Why Long Beach police took hours to respond to burglary – NBC Los Angeles

Ten days after seven stores were hit by vandals, three more stores in Long Beach’s East Village neighborhood were attacked this weekend.

In at least one incident, it took Long Beach police nearly four hours to respond.

“At the time of this dispatch, there were multiple arsons in the North Division area, a shooting … and an assault in the Downtown Entertainment District area,” wrote Hannah Ortiz, Long Beach’s public information officer. “Officers responded as soon as they could, which was 3 hours and 51 minutes after the initial dispatch.”

“I didn’t see any police here and I was like, ‘oh no!'” said Kimberly Latham, a shop owner who was rushing to her friend’s store when she was called by security. “It makes you sick, you just feel helpless.”

Latham arrived at 4:41 a.m. Sunday after security officers reported the break-in at Make Collectives to police. She was watching the store next door to hers while the owner was out of the country.

“I packed up my things, jumped in the car and got here at about 4:41 a.m. and realized I was ahead of the police. The police weren’t here yet,” Latham said.

Other business owners helped her secure the business and clean up the mess.

It was the last of three stores hit by vandals and thieves over the weekend.

Surveillance video shows the door window being smashed at Wabi Sabi Market at 146 Linden Avenue.. Long Beach police said “officers were on scene within two minutes of the burglary alarm being sounded.”

Because the Culture Shrooms store was also robbed, crews worked Monday to repair broken windows. Long Beach police said they “have not been able to log any 911 calls for 408 E 1st St. in the last week.”

Police have set up a mobile surveillance camera at the corner of Linden and Broadway to monitor the area.

Shop owners said they plan to meet with police on Thursday and call for a stronger physical presence in the neighborhood to prevent crime.

“We’re just saying, ‘Please stop the bleeding!’ Our small business community is on the verge of extinction because we’re being hit from all sides,” Latham said. “We want a thriving business community and a thriving neighborhood where people feel safe walking in and doing business.”

We reached out to Long Beach City Councilwoman Mary Zendejas’ office for comment and received no comment on the vandalism in her district.