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Smash-and-Grab Crews Use Cars as Battering Rams in Three Philadelphia Vape Shop Burglaries
Thieves rammed vehicles into two Philadelphia vape and tobacco shops during a string of at least three burglaries last week, stealing merchandise in under a minute while police work to determine whether the cases are linked.
Philadelphia police are investigating a series of brazen burglaries in which thieves used cars as battering rams to smash into vape and tobacco shops and steal merchandise, with at least three incidents reported last week in the Hunting Park and Wissinoming neighborhoods.
Culebra Snack & Vape on North Front Street in Hunting Park was struck twice â first on Tuesday morning and again on Friday morning â while Smoker's Palace on Keystone Street in Wissinoming was hit Saturday, according to police. Surveillance video from Smoker's Palace captured the moment a vehicle crashed through the store's front door, with one person heard on the recording urging the group to hit harder after an initial attempt failed to break the glass.
The store's security alarm sounded at about 6:30 a.m. Saturday. Video from inside the shop shows the group heading straight for the registers, which employees said contained no cash, before grabbing boxes of merchandise from back shelves. The entire break-in lasted roughly 30 seconds.
Employees told reporters the stolen items included Backwoods cigars and True Wraps cigar wrappers, products that are popular with customers. Workers spent the day boarding up the damaged vestibule.
"It's wild, I'm not surprised though. Cigarettes, anything quick, you know," said customer Steve Pruzinsky.
Another customer, Tone Griffin, said the damage far outweighs what the thieves made off with. "You're taking away not much, and then you're causing a lot of damage to this fella's shop," Griffin said. "I'm sure he has insurance, but at the same time this is something he put his hard work, sweat and tears into."
At Culebra Snack & Vape, a group drove a car into the front doors last Tuesday morning and returned with multiple vehicles on Friday morning, according to reports. The business has since installed protective bollards in front of the store to prevent a repeat attack.
Investigators are still working to determine how many people were involved in the burglaries and whether the incidents are connected. No arrests have been announced.
The burglaries add to concerns about commercial safety in Philadelphia's neighborhood business corridors, where small, independently owned shops often operate on thin margins and can be devastated by property damage even when cash losses are minimal. The use of stolen or personal vehicles as smash-and-grab tools has become a recurring tactic in retail crime nationally, leaving storefronts to absorb costly repairs and security upgrades.
Anyone with information about the burglaries is urged to contact Philadelphia police.