A couple on the Southwest Side were asleep in their home when they were woken up by a call reporting someone had broken into their business.
Store owners Ayesha Khan and Sunny Khan said they received a call from a security company around 3 a.m. Thursday informing them that an alarm had gone off at their store, New Quick Market, at 8301 S. Kedzie Ave. in the Ashburn neighborhood.
After calling police, the couple jumped into their car and sped to the store.
When they arrived, Aisha said she was shocked but not surprised by the damage that awaited them: The front door had been smashed, glass and cigarettes were strewn across the parking lot, and inside the store, the till had been smashed and stock had been thrown to the ground.
“This isn’t the first time something like this has happened,” Aisha said. “During the pandemic, the shop was looted and there was another robbery a few months ago. We had just finished repairing what was broken last time, and now it’s happened again.”
Ayesha said they also had to replace their front door and add security gates to the doors and windows.
Surveillance video showed the men jumping from two vehicles and latching onto the gate, dislodging it. The suspects then broke down the front door and entered the store.
They stole the ATM, money from the register and liquor bottles and fled in a car.
The amount of money stolen was not immediately known, Chicago police said.
“They used a car to destroy the ATM,” Aisha said. “It was bolted to the ground.”
The couple said they don’t know why their store keeps coming under attack, but they’re doing what they can to stay open.
“This business is our livelihood,” Ayesha said. “It’s my family’s livelihood. We have to stay open. We have no other choice. In the meantime, we will put up some temporary doors. These will help us get by until the new doors can be installed.”
Ayesha said she has handed over the CCTV footage to police but does not expect the culprit to be found.
“Every time there’s an incident, they gather information, but nothing happens,” she said.
The couple is frustrated and wants city officials to come up with a plan to protect small business owners from crime.
“The city needs to come up with a way to stop this because this is affecting small business owners who are struggling to survive,” Aisha said. “If this keeps happening, I don’t know how we’re going to stay in business. We need a plan.”
“Until we can do something, we’ll continue to serve the community.”
Police say the suspects are believed to be driving a black Jeep Cherokee and a black Lexus.
No arrests were made.
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