KANSAS CITY - While all eyes were on North St. Louis the night of the tornado (May 16th), a smash and grab happened at Music Folk on Big Bend Road. Surveillance video shows a man smashing through the front door, running to the front counter, grabbing the cash box, and running out the way he came in. The thief only got away with $300 from the cash box but it may cost Music Folk upwards of $5,000 to fix the front door.
Music Folk has a wide range of instruments from the acoustic world like sitars, zithers, dulcimers, singing bowls, and guitars. So why didn't the thief grab one of the high-dollar Martin, Guild, or Gibson guitars hanging on the wall? Owner Don Ploof tells KMOX there's a network of pawn shops and music stores that keep an eye out for stolen instruments. He says his shop will typically get a call from other store owners to be on the lookout for the stolen instruments in case someone tries to sell them to them.
Webster Groves police sent a statement to KMOX saying, "We have obtained video surveillance from several nearby businesses and are currently pursuing multiple leads. Additionally, we were able to recover and lift fingerprints from the crime scene, which have been sent to the crime lab for analysis. We are also coordinating with other agencies that have experienced similar incidents involving a suspect matching the same description. If anyone has additional information that could assist with the investigation, tips can be submitted to the Webster Groves Intel email address."
Music Folk Owner Don Ploof believes the man who broke in during the tornado also broke in through the back door of his shop last year and stole the cash box.