The letter specifically pointed to the location’s issues with crime as part of the reason.
had its highest number of break-ins and thefts in two decades, despite actions to provide extra security,” REI wrote in the internal letter, obtained by The Seattle Times.
The store was hit by one especially brazen theft last November when a perpetrator rammed a car through REI’s entrance and stole apparel before fleeing. A spokeswoman for REI said that the company tried to fortify the store by replacing its windows with security glass, hiring 24-hour security, and installing surveillance equipment by the store’s loading dock.spokeswoman Megan Behrbaum told the newspaper.
“We still experienced 10 burglaries, including one event that shut down our 14th Street entrance for more than two months,” she said.Mayor Ted Wheeler’s office said that the city began focusing more police patrols to the area and worked to intercept shoplifters.Local NBC affiliate KGW-TV reported that the area saw 933 reported thefts through the first 10 months of 2022, up from 791 reported thefts during the first 10 months of 2019, the most recent pre-pandemic year.
Car thefts jumped from 35 in 2019 to 119 in 2022, and assaults increased from 126 to 197 in that same time frame.
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