’Oh no, not again,’ Huntersville business burglarized a second time

HUNTERSVILLE, N.C. (WBTV) - For the third time in less than 2 years, a local business has been the victim of a burglary. Sweet Frog in Huntersville has been broken into twice and the location in Lake Norman has been hit once.

Monday morning, thieves broke into the Huntersville location just before 4 a.m.

“Oh no, not again. Why is this happening again,” said owner Steve Anto. “You know one, it is a lot of time and anxiety. There is a lot of things you have to do to get things back in operation.”

Two thieves are seen on video pulling up in Budget truck and then using a rock to smash through the front door.

“Took the rock and ran it through the window 2-3 times and forced his way through underneath this,” said Anto. “He tore all this out and then went straight back to the kitchen.”

The burglar inside moved to the back office and grabbed the safe and dragged it to the front door.

“The safe was very heavy. In fact, I didn’t know it wasn’t bolted down it was so heavy,” said Anto.

This is the second time this location has been hit - and Anto’s location in Lake Norman has also been hit in the past 2 years.

“Small business. We don’t make a ton of money and when you have a loss like this it hurts. It is painful,” said Anto. “It is pretty devastating for a period and then you get mad. You get angry and then figure out what you are going to do about this.”

Anto says they are working with police and police are trying to take DNA off a tool that was left behind at the scene. He also says they are working with their security system company to find ways to improve alert and response times.

“There is a great opportunity for police to work more closely with shop owners. How do we work together to stop this?” said Anto.

The owner says he hopes other local businesses will collaborate more on working to protect one another whether through camera systems or meetings.

“My wife reached out to you guys and was like, ‘I am tired of this. I am shaken,” said Anto.

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