About 80 people, some wearing ski masks and wielding crow bars, ransacked a high-end department store in the San Francisco Bay Area, stealing merchandise before fleeing in cars waiting outside, police and witnesses said.<\/p>\n
Three people were arrested while the majority got away after the large-scale theft Saturday night shocked shoppers at the Nordstrom in Walnut Creek, police said.<\/p>\n
NBC Bay Area reporter Jodi Hernandez tweeted that she saw the thieves rush into the store in the downtown shopping district in the city some 32km northeast of San Francisco.<\/p>\n
“About 25 cars just blocked the street and rushed into the Walnut Creek Nordstrom, making off with goods before getting in cars and speeding away,” Hernandez said on Twitter.<\/p>\n
Video from the scene shows masked people streaming out of the store, carrying bags and boxes, jumping into the cars and speeding away.<\/p>\n
Brett Barrette, the manager of a nearby PF Chang’s restaurant, began locking doors at his establishment while watching the chaos unfold.<\/p>\n
“We probably saw 50 to 80 people in ski masks, crowbars, a bunch of weapons,” Barrette told ABC 7 News.<\/p>\n
The Walnut Creek Police Department said a firearm was recovered from one of the three arrested suspects, ABC 7 reported.<\/p>\n
The incident was first reported around 8.45pm while the store was still open. Police officials couldn’t immediately be reached Sunday morning, but a dispatcher said the department was preparing a news release.<\/p>\n
No injuries were reported. Nobody answered the phone at the Nordstrom Sunday morning.<\/p>\n
The incident came a day after several high-end stores in San Francisco’s Union Square were broken into by a large group of people who smashed windows, stole merchandise, and then ran to waiting cars, police said.<\/p>\n
Louis Vuitton, Fendi, Yves Saint Laurent, Burberry, and Dolce & Gabbana were all targeted Friday night, Fox 2 News reported.<\/p>\n
San Francisco Police Officer Robert Rueca said in a statement posted on social media that officers responded to reports of possible looting and vandalism at Union Square stores Friday night and arrested several people.<\/p>\n
Stores in Union Square, a posh shopping district popular with tourists, have been targeted for years by well-organised thieves who at times have rammed vehicles into storefronts to break glass doors and windows and enter the buildings during non-business hours.<\/p>\n
In July, Governor Gavin Newsom signed a law that allows prosecutors to charge those who work with others to steal merchandise.<\/p>\n
– AP<\/i><\/p>\n