SAN ANTONIO – The manager of a Family Dollar store on the city’s west side said a break-in at the business happened quickly and appeared to be planned.
Matthew Rodriguez found out about the crime after 1:30 a.m. Monday by way of a phone call from an alarm company.
Someone had smashed one of the front windows, triggering the burglar alarm.
"I came over and sure enough, glass everywhere," Rodriguez said.
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San Antonio police received a call around the same time and arrived within minutes in the 7400 block of West Military Drive.
Officers at the scene told KSAT 12 News they obtained surveillance video showing the crime in action.
They said it showed a man entering the business and carrying out a load of merchandise, including several electronic items, in a trash bag. The man put the bag into a shopping cart which he had waiting outside.
Rodriguez also viewed the video and said the burglar acted quickly.
"He was just going through," he said. "I mean he was shoving things in. Got out. Done. So, I mean he knew what he was doing. "
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Rodriguez believes the burglary may have involved quite a bit of planning.
The man appeared to know exactly what to take, and he even brought the shopping cart with him, Rodriguez said.
Officers later found the shopping cart nearby, still loaded with stolen merchandise.
Rodriguez said it appears the burglar may have gotten away empty-handed.
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"Everything that we saw him taking on camera, they basically got back. It was almost, like, everything," he said.
Even though they spent about an hour searching, officers never tracked down the man.
Rodriguez spent several hours minding the business until the window could be repaired.