In a disquieting incident early Friday morning, the owner of Sweet Valentine Bakery in Carson was greeted by widespread destruction inside his store, reportedly caused by a half-naked homeless woman. According to ABC7, bakery owner Matthew Valentine arrived to find furniture, decorations, and baked goods strewn about with the perpetrator still on the scene—the damage was so extensive that community volunteers were enlisted to help clean up, which allowed the bakery to reopen the same afternoon, despite the shock and disruption early in the day.
Matthew Valentine described a chaotic scene to CBS News Los Angeles, saying the woman asked him who he was, told him to leave, and then proceeded to smash and throw items within the store; she was naked from the waist down and appeared to be mentally unstable, Valentine managed to call the authorities without physically engaging with her, the resulting mess forced Valentine to close the shop for the day, and he is now considering revising his security measures, this being the second break-in since the shop's opening 10 months prior.
The video posted by Valentine revealed the aftermath of the vandalism, with products and furniture knocked to the ground. Subsequent arrest footage showed officers handcuffing the woman, who was wearing only a sweatshirt at the time, as detailed by KTLA. Valentine, emotionally impacted by the incident, expressed the store's meaning to him, saying, "This is my pride and joy." He also added, "This is a lifelong dream accomplished for me."
Despite the incident's gravity and the loss of inventory, the bakery's equipment stayed intact and employees began baking anew for a delayed opening—NBC Los Angeles reported community members showed their support by cleaning and then selling out the shop the same day. Sweet Valentine Bakery announced a full reopening scheduled for the next morning at 8 a.m., with this act of vandalism marking the second such breach of the business in its brief operation period.
