Massachusetts

‘A Nightmare': Several Melrose Businesses Broken Into

'It’s gut-wrenching. I’ve been nauseous all day, nothing we want to deal with especially living in a nice town like Melrose,' one business owner said

Police are looking for whoever is responsible for a string of break-ins Friday in Melrose, Massachusetts. 

Glass can be seen on surveillance camera flying everywhere inside Perella Jewelers.

Somebody tried to break-in Friday morning but broken glass is all the damage they could do.

The owner had put a special film on the windows after a previous robbery so the entire pane wouldn’t shatter.

“It was just a nightmare,” said owner Paul Perella. “Right before Christmas.”

Madison Ave of Melrose, a boutique and consignment store, was also targeted in the downtown area.

The suspects not only broke the glass, but got inside and made off with at least 15 designer handbags like Gucci and Louis Vuitton.

“When we got here I noticed that most of the bags that we keep in the window overnight were missing,” said shop owner Katie Murphy.

The estimated value of the bags is at least $15,000. The crime took place just as the small business was ready for the height of the holiday shopping season.

“Louis Vuitton is probably the most coveted designer bag right now in this market,” said Murphy. “And people know to come to us to buy them. Now we’re without a lot of them.”

Elsewhere in Melrose the suspects also broke windows at Liberty Bell Roast Beef and Seafood, and the Honey Dew next door, where someone can be seen in surveillance video trying to smash the window before quickly taking off.

“We work so hard every day, diligently, but what I say is we’re lucky,” said Honey Dew owner Lisa Kennedy-O’Dowd. “Because it could have been a lot worse.”

At Madison Ave, the shop had to close down for the day because there was so much glass all over the place.

The owner says because the bags are so recognizable, she’s hoping someone will see them and call police with a tip.

“It’s gut-wrenching,” said Murphy. “I’ve been nauseous all day, nothing we want to deal with especially living in a nice town like Melrose.”

There was also a window broken at Melrose High School.

Police are investigating all of these crimes but so far there have been no arrests.

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