Thieves struck yet again in the West Loop, this time taking a Jeep right through the front of upscale clothing store SVRN in a brazen 'crash-and-grab' heist. The incident unfolded at approximately 3:11 a.m. in the 100 block of North Aberdeen, with suspects making off with unknown quantities of high-end goods before scattering NBC Chicago reports.
The security footage showed a Jeep forcefully ramming into the store's security gate as another vehicle dragged away barriers designed to protect the entrance. "We've done everything we could," owner David Kim lamented in a statement obtained by ABC7 Chicago. "We put barriers up, gates. Hiding our inventory in our stock room. They are still relentless enough, and no one is doing anything to stop these across the city."
The crime marks the third such incident for SVRN in just three weeks, according to the Kims, who also noted it was the seventh or eighth heist in the past two years. The most recent robbery could potentially set the store back between $50,000 and $100,000, NBC Chicago stated. The harrowing scene left shattered glass and a wrecked storefront, with aftermath costs that the Kims said would come from their own pockets.
No arrests have been made, as detectives are aggressively trying to trace down the individuals responsible. Speaking to the spirit of persistence amidst adversity, David said, "I love this city, and I have a lot of pride for this city, but I think everyone in power needs to do a better job and look out for its community," according to the NBC Chicago interview. As small business owners inundated by the constant threat, the Kims fear for the sustainability of their enterprise and others like it.
With the rash of similar 'crash-and-grabs' concerning businesses city-wide, including a recent attempt to snatch an ATM from a River North store, local proprietors like the Kims are pleading for more to be done. "If you keep this up, there's gonna be nothing left for you guys to shop at," Robert Kim indicated in a stark warning reported by ABC7 Chicago. The Kim brothers have called for city leaders to step up and curb these property crimes against small businesses, businesses that give back to the community and represent the backbone of Chicago's commercial landscape.
