The owner of Le Marais Bakery is asking city officials to “do more” after his business was ransacked on Monday.
The Le Marais Bakery outpost at 498 Sanchez St. was targeted this week, but it’s the second time a break-in has occurred at the business this month, according to KPIX. Patrick Ascaso, owner of Le Marais Bakery, directed his frustration toward Mayor London Breed, Governor Gavin Newsom and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi on Instagram for not protecting local small businesses in San Francisco.
“They took everything from our Castro café last night, even our industrial safe from the basement,” Ascaso wrote. “… Please, San Francisco and California leaders, do more to care for our city and its small businesses. … Our communities deserve better.”
Eve Laokwansathitaya, a public information officer at the San Francisco Police Department, told Hoodline that SFPD responded to the burglary at around 8:08 a.m. on Monday. When SFPD met with an employee on-site, they discovered that the glass front door had been smashed and several objects were missing. Burglars took off with iPads, staff presents and the basement safe, which was bolted to the floor, KPIX reports. SFPD told Hoodline on Tuesday that no arrests had been made at this time.
By Wednesday afternoon, the Le Marais Bakery Instagram post had received more than 6,000 likes and garnered the attention of other restaurants and customers, who showed their support. On Twitter, supervisor Ahsha Safai agreed that San Francisco needs to safeguard small businesses, and Bevan Dufty, a member of the BART Board of Directors, tweeted that he had purchased a couple of gift cards from Le Marais Bakery to help financially aid the business.
Ascaso thanked the community on Wednesday for the outpour of messages. He added he hoped government leaders could host a summit for small businesses experiencing break-ins.
“Hopefully we can all come together to help to present solutions,” Ascaso wrote.