Chick Boss Cake owner speaks out after suspect breaks into bakery Friday night

A London, Ont. business owner is speaking out Saturday after her bakery was once again broken into — and she’s calling on the city and police to come together to address what she believes is an escalating problem.

Rebecca Hamilton is the owner of Chick Boss Cake, and she discovered her bakery, located on Wellington Street, was broken into Friday night. Surveillance video depicts an unmasked man approach the bakery and look at the security camera, come back wearing a mask, and then smash the door by repeatedly throwing a brick.

Hamilton said various items were stolen during the break and enter, and it’s not the first time this has happened.

“This has happened over the last two years probably five to 10 times with the glass being smashed, and then on separate occasions, our vehicles being damaged or vandalized as well,” she said.

Hamilton said her new security cameras, which she installed following the last break in, and the fact that the suspect at first approached the bakery unmasked, are what led to his arrest on Saturday.

However, London police have not yet confirmed this information.

“They said he’s going to be charged and then he’ll be back on the streets by dinner time and doing this to another business,” said Hamilton.

It’s not the only southwestern Ontario business hit by crime. In the last three months, CTV News London has reported on vandalism at the London Music Hall of Fame, suspected arson at Wortley Village’s Black Walnut Café, and a vandalism spree in downtown Kincardine, Ont. in which a suspect smashed in the front windows of 11 different stores.

“It’s just been progressively getting worse over the last two years,” said Hamilton.

Hamilton said she wants to see the city and police come together to address the problem — otherwise business owners suffer.

“It’s the insurance that we pay,” said Hamilton. “With the glass and the repairs and stuff like that…that really adds up with how frequent this happens.”