Perezsosa Bakery Robbed

Forced to shut down.

WSVN reports:

Former employee robs bakery; owners forced to shut down

CORAL GABLES, Fla. (WSVN) -- Coral Gables police have released surveillance video of a suspect who robbed his employee. The suspect took much more than money which caused the business to shut down, authorities said.

Police said he was an employee at the bakery who thought he knew the layout of the place and went with intentions of blacking out the cameras, but another camera caught him. Coral Gables Police Sergeant Janette Frevola said, "It's a crime. Unfortunately, it's a brazing crime of opportunity and this gentleman took advantage of his employers, and basically stole their life savings."

Perezsosa Bakery was a landmark in the community which people frequent and now, everything is missing, from the gas range to the cash register and the counters.

Surveillance footage showed the day before the suspect spray painted the surveillance cameras until it went to black. The other camera captured him getting in and out of the truck the next day.

Police said they are hoping the property is returned to the owners. "The message is to try and figure out where the property is, anybody that knows the whereabouts, not just the suspect himself. Just return the property back to these victims. They are in real need of it," Frevola said.

The sign in front of the now empty building left a message for the community. The message read, the thieves have left us without the means to make any of our bread or pastries.

If you have any information on this crime, call Coral Gables Police at (305) 442-1600.

Here's a photo of the suspect:

As a child, I would walk to Perezsosa bakery with my grandfather when they were located on Calle Ocho. Many years later, and years after my Grandfather had passed away, I happened upon the Pereszosa on Ponce de Leon one day. Cira, the owner, stared at me for a few moments and once it my was turn to order, looked me straight in the eyes and said: "You used to come to the old store with your grandfather, no?"

Twenty some odd years later and she still recognized me. Every time I've been there since, I've been treated like family. That's the kind of folks Cira, Carlos and Vicky are.

My heart goes out to them as I know the hard work, dedication and love they put into Perezsosa.

Update: The video on WSVN's site is heartbreaking. The guy took everything, from cooking equipment to pastries. He even took decades of memorabilia that adorned the landmark bakery.

Posted by Val Prieto at February 5, 2009 08:17 AM

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