###
Just 10 days after the public learned that Annie’s Cambodian Cuisine will be demolished to make way for a drive-through, the Annie’s family is dealing with more distress, after a masked burglar broke into the restaurant early Tuesday morning.
Laura Chau-Yang, co-owner of Annie’s Cambodian, arrived at the restaurant at about 7 a.m. and found the front door glass had been smashed in, she told the Outpost this morning. When she went inside, Chau-Yang discovered that the cash register had been taken. The register contained less than $200.
Footage from the restaurant’s security cameras shows that the intruder smashed in the door sometime after midnight, briefly entered the restaurant and then left. The intruder then returned just before 4 a.m. (presumably having waited to make sure no alarms went off or police arrived), immediately went to the refrigerator and filled one grocery bag with beer and another with bottles of Pepsi. The intruder then went behind the counter to grab the cash register, struggled for a moment, pulling hard on the register to disconnect it from its cords. The burglar then returned to the bags of drinks, picked them up and headed out the door.
Below is footage of the break in, starting when the burglar returned at about 3:47 a.m.
The intruder was wearing a hoodie, a face mask and gloves and, as Chau-Yang points out in the video commentary, had a long object tucked into the back of their hoodie — possibly a machete or other weapon of some kind. Although it is difficult to say for certain what the object is.
The owners have reported the incident to the Eureka Police Department
and Chau-Yang said that their insurance should cover some of the losses
and damages. Her biggest immediate concern is finding someone to fix the
door. In the meantime, the restaurant will be open for its usual hours,
though it may be a bit drafty.
“If you come to Annie’s today, dress warm,” Chau-Yang told the Outpost.