- La Cabana, La Tropicana, Taqueria Guadalajara, and El Olvido Haciendo
- Several Calallen restaurants burglarized by thieves
- Nov. 2, Nov. 14, Nov. 15
- 10669 Leopard St., 9802 Leopard St., 10341 Leopard St., 14617 Northwest Blvd.
Corpus Christi Police said they have a suspect identified in a series of burglaries at several local restaurants in the Calallen-Annaville area.
KRIS 6 received a tip about the first burglary which happened Nov. 2 at La Cabana Mexican Restaurant. Nearly two weeks later, several other restaurants were targeted. La Tropicana was next. The following day, two other restaurants were hit: Taqueria Guadajalara and El Olvido Hacienda.
The owners at El Olvido Haciendo spoke with KRIS 6 following the terrifying incident. The owner's children recalled the moments their mother opened the restaurant before 5 a.m. on Wednesday.
“When she got out of the car, she heard the glass breaking and as soon as she walked in, she saw the mess," Fernando Garcia said. "She got really, really scared. She ran out and called us. Then we called the police.”
The alleged suspect took off right after, but surveillance video captured his every move. Photos were taken from the recorded video while he ransacked through drawers, trashing the family-owned restaurant. The owner said he even got away with two cash registers, cash and a few checks.
“Looking back at the footage, it did look a little bit premeditated and calculated, just slightly like he had a plan," Garcia said, "He knew where to go, what cameras to cut. Fortunately, he didn’t cut anything major, but he knew exactly where to go and where to hide.”
Now, the owners said they've been getting harassing calls.
“The day after, I’ve been getting a lot of harassing phone calls from many different phone numbers," Elsa Garcia said. 'They’ve been telling me you’re going to die,' 'You fat cheeseburger,' I'm not scared, but I feel like I'm not the target and we've gotten more than fifteen calls in the matter of thirty minutes."
But El Olvido was not the only restaurant impacted by the suspect's thieving deeds. Taqueria Guadalajara was also hit. The owner said the thief shattered one of the doors, took cash from the register and damaged other property inside the restaurant.
Corpus Christi Police said there is an ongoing investigation into the alleged suspect and if they are caught, could face a state jail felony, which is punishable by up to two years in jail and up to a $10,000 fine.
The owners of each restaurant said they're happy that no one was physically hurt during the burglaries, but are hoping the police catches whoever did this.
