WINTER SPRINGS, Fla. – Seminole County sheriff's deputies said at least four different restaurants within a quarter-mile of each other have been targeted by burglars over the past two weeks.
Early Monday morning, deputies were called to the Promenade at Tuskawilla at the corner of Tuskawilla Road and Red Bug Lake Road. Deputies said Planet Smoothie, 369 Chinese Restaurant, and Stefano's Trattoria were all damaged by a cinder block thrown through the glass front door.
Two weeks earlier, a 25-pound dumbbell was thrown through the door at Keke's Breakfast Cafe on Red Bug Lake Road.
The business owners or managers told News 6 the thief either took or tried to take the safe.
"He lift it, throw it, hoping it would open, but they don't open," said Francisco Clavier, manager at Keke's. "Once he realize it wouldn't open he rolled it out the door."
The owner of Planet Smoothie said the crook smashed her safe with a hammer but was unable to open it or remove it.
The owner of 369 Chinese said when the crook couldn't find the safe inside his restaurant, the thief instead smashed the cash register on the ground and stole the money inside it.
"It's bad because we're a mom and pop business, we have a budget for everything," said Alejandro Martinez, owner of Stefano's Trattoria. "We have to pay $300 for someone to fix the glass."
Clavier said his loss totaled more than $4,000.
"We work hard for what we got, and it's easy for someone to come and take it from us," said Clavier.
Clavier also said he knows of three other Keke's that were broken into recently in the same manner. Since then, he said Keke's has stopped storing money in the safes.
Deputies said they are checking with other law enforcement agencies to see if they've experienced similar burglaries and if they are connected.