Last weekend it was the gumball machine, this weekend it was the compartment candy machine with Skittles and M&Ms. Burglars at Best Pawn on 16th Street have been foregoing merchandise for the vending machines near the front door.
An alarm sounded at 3:45 a.m. Saturday and Orange police arrived within a couple of minutes. Officer M.C. Bernard reporting finding the front door lock pried open.
The manager of the store came and police reviewed a surveillance video showing a man with a long, thin object prying the door open. He grabbed the compartment candy machine, worth $500, and left within about seven seconds.
The video showed the man was black, wearing a dark blue jacket, a gray hooded jacket, blue pants, white and black shoes.
The store manager estimated the crook caused about $2,000 in damage to the front door early Saturday.
On the night of Friday, December 1, a burglar broke into the front door, stole the gumball machine, and ran away before police responded to the alarm. KOGT.com has a police video of the Bubble Gum Bandit.
Saturday night, a similar break-in was reported at Smart Wireless, 811 Strickland Drive. The burglar carried off several cell phones and tablets in a white plastic garbage bag.
Officer J. Patronella reported the glass front door was broken and two glass cases inside had been broken. She said the clerk at the next door convenience store called police after a man came inside telling him someone had broken into Smart Wireless and driven off in a white car.
Officer Patronella said the manager showed surveillance video. The burglar got inside by throwing a sewer hole cover through the door. The officer said the thief also used a long, skinny metal object to break the glass cases.
The man was wearing a dark colored jacket with a hood, dark pants and dark shoes with light-colored soles. He also had on white gloves. She said the ethnicity of the man could not be determined from the video.
Early Sunday morning, an alarm sounded at Southeast Texas Federal Credit Union, 1608 West Park Avenue. Police went at 12:35 a.m. and reported a window had been broken. Someone had rummaged through the office. The business is by the intersection with 16th Street and near Best Pawn.
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