An El Paso Business Waits Days For Police Response After Break In
A local business was broken into four days ago and counting, and the owner is still waiting for El Paso Police to show up to file a report.
The Red Door Vintage is a local shop in Central El Paso that specializes in horror, props, makeup, art, accessories, oddities, decals, t-shirts, and more.
After being vandalized on Friday, July 15th, the owner Letty Peña has had to close her business since she can't get the police to come out to file a report.
Peña says that on Saturday morning, she went to open her store only to find that the electricity to her shop was tampered with, shutting off the alarm and cameras, allowing thieves to rob her store.
The vandals did plenty of damage, breaking the door and some windows and stealing over $1000 in merchandise.
Letty tells me she called 911 around 9 am on Saturday and was told by the operator someone would reach out since all patrols were busy. Later that evening, she called back only to be told she had to wait.
The next day, Peña went to the police station, only to be denied again and told there was nothing anyone could do and that she had to wait.
The problem Peña tells me is that she feels unsafe, and the police are nowhere in sight. To add insult to injury, she is unable to clean or asses what she entirely lost in order to maintain the crime scene.
Unfortunately, this isn't the first time businesses along Montana have been robbed. Spiritual Worx and El Jiggy Market, two other local shops less than a half mile from the Red Door Vintage, have also been burglarized in the last year, promoting those businesses to install bars.
Peña voiced her frustration saying that she didn't understand why it's taken the police so long to respond.
The local female business owner says after this incident, she is seriously considering moving to another location because she no longer feels safe, especially when she usually takes her daughter to work at times.
Speaking with Peña over the phone, she expressed her disappointment with the El Paso Police Department, saying the system is flawed.
We depend on them; they are here to serve and protect – but they don't show up or even follow up with a callback. Where are they? I understand they are busy but come on, we are going on the fourth day, and I'm still waiting for them to show up. I'm losing money every day, and I can't do anything until they show up to file a report.
Peña says she has exhausted her options; by calling 911, 311, going to the police station, and even attempting to reach out to the sheriff's department. However, each time she asked for help, she was asked to wait since her claim was technically not an emergency.
Part of the problem Peña says is the increase of crime sprees in the area, and with no police presence, she feels as if businesses and residents are left to defend themselves from the recent uptick of junkies and vagrants.
In the meantime, Peña has received plenty of support from friends, clients, and businesses, including Sauvecito (which sells hair/barber products) out of San Diego, who plans to send her new merchandise to replace what she lost.
Since she had to board up and close her store to preserve evidence, Peña has created a GoFundMe Page to help her stay afloat until police arrive to officially file a report, reopen and begin recouping some of her losses.