Overview
- Investigators say one group forced entry into an East Los Angeles AutoZone at about 2:22 a.m. on Aug. 8 when a person smashed the glass door and roughly 10 others entered in a coordinated burglary.
- Officials say the same store was hit again at about 3:30 a.m. on Aug. 9 during a larger street takeover, and video shows people rushing in and out while engines and squealing tires could be heard.
- The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department first circulated images tied to the Aug. 9 incident and has now posted 27 photos from surveillance footage as part of its identification effort.
- Reports and on-scene video show heavy damage to the store, including shattered glass and destroyed electronics, and news outlets have cited an OnScene TV estimate of roughly $50,000 in stolen merchandise and three stolen cash registers though those figures are not court-verified.
- Similar takeover-linked break-ins were reported at other local businesses over the same weekend, prompting owners to board up storefronts and pushing investigators to rely on video evidence and public tips to build cases and prevent repeat attacks.