Cheltenham Twp., Philadelphia police search for suspects wanted in crime spree
Police say at least one suspect is behind seven crimes that occurred from January to March.
CHELTENHAM TWP., Pennsylvania (WPVI) -- Officials are looking for suspects who they say are engaging in a crime spree across Philadelphia and Cheltenham Township, targeting businesses and stealing thousands of dollars.
"If you're a small business owner, that obviously means you're trying to make a living and it's just hard in Philadelphia, in general, trying to make a living," said Serea Mosley of University City. "Being robbed or targeted is something that's totally not cool."
Police say at least one suspect is behind seven crimes that occurred from January to March. Officials said the victims are similar and the modus operandi is the same.
Aman Kaur and her family found themselves the victim of a crime on January 24, after discovering their gas station on 6200 North Broad Street was ransacked.
Police said three men broke into their store at 4 a.m., forced open registers, gambling machines, stole lottery tickets and made off with more than $21,000.
"Then, they tried breaking in again and it was like two times in a row. Being a small business owner, we are dealing with a lot of economic crisis and all these break-ins are just killing us in a way," said Kaur, a manager for the store.
Kaur and her family are hardly alone.
Three days later police said one suspect attempted to break into the Royal Meats Market on the 1600 block of Wadsworth Avenue. The suspect attempted to pry open the back door first with a tow cable and then a crowbar.
"Maybe this is the sign that we move on to some other business or go online or something," said Kaur. "Now it's not generating money, it's taking our saved money so it's kind of sad."
Anyone with information about these crimes is asked to call police at 215-686-3353.
