Burglars break into Douglas hair braiding shop, Chicago police say

CHICAGO (WLS) -- A hair braiding shop was burglarized overnight on Chicago's South Side, police said.

The crime happened early Sunday near 35th Street and Giles Avenue at African Hair Braiding by Awa in Douglas.

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Chicago police said four people broke into the store and burglarized it. It is unknown exactly what the suspects took.

The owner of the business, Awa Gueye, spent the early morning Sunday cleaning up after her store was burglarized.

"I come with me and my sister and my son to see all of the glass here in the window broken," Gueye said.

Surveillance video shows five suspects use, what looked like, hammers to smash through the glass window around 3:50 a.m.

Video from inside showed them run toward the back of the store, quickly collect boxes of items and bring them out to their getaway car one by one.

"They steal a lot of hair. I have a lot of boxes of hair that I buy, because I have a big business," Gueye said. "I have a lot of customers who would like to come here because we do a good job here."

While she's grateful none of her employees were hurt, Gueye said the thieves stole expensive hair supply.

"The wigs are very expensive, very expensive... It cost me a lot of money," Gueye said. "I'm a working woman, do my business, work. I'm tired you know. Hair is not easy. It's a very hard job."

Around the same time overnight, Chicago police said suspects also smashed the front glass door of Forno Rosso Pizzeria Napoletana near Harlem and Waveland in the Dunning neighborhood.

READ MORE | Chicago police investigate break-in at pizzeria in Dunning

Thieves stole a safe from inside the restaurant, which was later found near 41st and Pulaski.

It was a similar scene near Milwaukee and Paulina. The Belmont Army Surplus Store was also broken into this morning. The large front window display was shattered.

Back in Douglas, Gueye said this is the second time her store has been broken into. In business for 20 years, she said it's becoming increasingly difficult to be a Chicago business owner, and she is asking for the community's support.

"It's hard for business owners. It's very very hard," Gueye said. "I need a lot of people to support me because they take all of my stuff out of the back."

It's unclear if any of the break-in incidents across the city are connected to one another.

So far, no arrests have been made in the break-in at African Hair Braiding by Awa. The suspects drove off in a four-door sedan, Chicago police said.

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