Early on the morning of Jan. 14, two thieves hit 4 separate shops in Kent, Wash., by backing a stolen Audi SUV by way of their entrance doorways. This included GameBound, an independently-operated, locally-owned retailer that makes a speciality of “the whole lot that’s geek and nerdy.”
Every week later, GameBound was again in enterprise, utilizing the break-in to reorganize and are available again “even higher.”
It was the primary theft on the Seattle-area retailer since proprietor Kiet Pham opened it in 2017.
“I believed I had the whole lot down, to the safety, the cameras, the sensor, the bars,” Pham advised GeekWire. “My retailer was closely secured and gated. The one factor I couldn’t plan for was the automobile.”
The thieves stole a number of video games and consoles from GameBound, along with inflicting what Pham estimates to be roughly $22,000 in harm.
The thieves additionally hit a GameStop, an Xfinity outlet, and an eyeglasses retailer over the course of the evening, utilizing the identical SUV.
Pham stated he’s working along with his landlord to put in bollards. In the event that they aren’t ready to try this, he stated he might have to relocate to a safer space.
In keeping with Pham, each different retailer in the identical retail advanced as GameBound has been damaged into a few times within the final couple of years, and a pair have been robbed each month.
Business burglaries in Kent have been up 45% in 2022, in response to information from Kent Police.
Final 12 months, Seattle online game retailer Pink Gorilla additionally handled break-ins, however has bounced again and even opened a brand new location in December.
Pham doesn’t anticipate needing monetary assist with the shop’s repairs, as he additionally occurs to personal an insurance coverage company, and made certain GameBound was effectively lined.
“It’s factor I wrote a very good coverage for myself at first,” Pham stated. “I’m fortunate. Nonetheless, as an insurance coverage skilled for 13 years, there are the labor prices and the time prices for cleansing up, and the deductible.”
The merchandise taken from GameBound on Jan. 14 contains complete-in-box PlayStation, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, GameCube, Wii, Xbox, and Xbox 360 online game consoles; a Recreation Boy; a Recreation Boy Colour; a Texas Devices graphing calculator in its unique packaging; and a number of Sega CD and Sega Saturn video games. The objects have been all labeled with GameBound stickers.
As well as, the break-in destroyed 4 glass show cupboards and instances, the shop’s folding safety gate, and two objects from Pham’s private assortment: unique show kiosks for the Xbox and PlayStation, of the type that you simply would possibly’ve seen in online game shops when the methods have been new. The kiosks, which will likely be tough at finest to restore or substitute, are the one harm from the break-in that’s really upset Pham.
GameBound’s “bread and butter,” in response to Pham, is promoting used video video games, from present releases to previous “retro” titles such because the Atari. As well as, GameBound provides toys, buying and selling playing cards, and comics.
Pham took to social media final week to unfold phrase of the break-in, in addition to put out images of the 2 thieves that have been taken by his retailer’s safety cameras.
