The West Oak Lane neighbourhood of Philadelphia’s Boost Mobile on Ogontz Avenue is open, but the doors are closed until customers enter. The first robbery occurred on September 24th. The suspect entered the store and demanded money from the clerk.
Philadelphia Business Owner Takes Matters Into His Own Hands After String of Robbery
Since the establishment was targeted three days in a row, the proprietor claimed that this is the most recent security precaution.
Owner Ankit Tiwari stated, “On September 13th, we had a robber who came inside the business and there was an employee working over here. He displayed the knife before leaving with some cash.
The following evening, the same thing took place. Tiwari was ready for the third day at that point.
No cops responded when he called for the arrival of the Philadelphia police.
“I realised I had to protect my business, my property, and my staff. I have to resolve things on my own,” Tiwari remarked.
As shown in the security footage, Tiwari then used a bat to pursue the guy away.
According to Tiwari, it took them around 28 minutes to respond to the robbery call. “So I went ahead and reported a crime to the police.”
Tiwari is concerned about more than just how slowly the police respond. Moreover, the future of his company as well as other companies.
He claimed that seven of his establishments were robbed in September, with the most recent taking place this week amid the looting.
He claimed that during the previous six months, he lost around $75,000 and more than $25,000 only this month.
Philadelphia Sees 4% Increase in Robberies in the Past Year, Prompting Business Closures
In the previous 12 months, there were more than 5,300 robberies, according to the 6abc Neighbourhood Safety Tracker. which represents an increase of 4% over the annual average for the previous three years.
Tiwari claimed he was forced to close two of his businesses.
“I feel sad because the stores are like my babies,” Tiwari remarked. “I opened them up. And I purchased them. As a business owner as well as for the customers, I’m saddened. I simply cannot keep suffering losses like this continuously.
Philadelphia police were contacted by Action News over the officers’ reaction times.
They declined to comment, stating that the situation is being investigated internally.
In relation to the suspect, please provide any knowledge you may have. The Northwest Detective Division should be contacted.
Additionally, the city’s Department of Commerce office supports entrepreneurs. To discover more about the financial support programmes, get in touch with them by phoning 215-683-2100 or sending an email to [email protected].
