MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Looters ransacked a community market in Raleigh.
This comes days after the storm swept through the neighborhood knocking out power in the entire region.
Michael Wilson was victimized twice.
Once by the storm we just had.
Then by crooks.
“The store was ransacked,” said Wilson, the manager of Raleigh Community Market. “Food everywhere, convenience items everywhere, the freezers open and the cash registers gone.”
Just days before celebrating their one-year anniversary, smash-and-grab thieves looted the community market early Wednesday.
This happened only a few days after the storm.
Memphis Police said the crooks broke the glass window and made their way inside the store stealing food, tobacco products, lottery tickets and a handgun around 4:45 a.m.
“We have hotels across the street, people kind of be in and out of there,” Wilson said. “I can’t just blame the entire community for a few bad bugs.”
Because the storm knocked out power in the entire Raleigh community, the security cameras located right outside the store were not working.
However, the motion detectors inside the store notified Wilson that people were breaking in.
FOX13 reached out to Memphis Police to find out if they have any person of interest.
They said they do not have any suspects in custody.
The manager of the Raleigh Community Market said the business does not have insurance.
An insurance agent from A&S Solutions said it’s challenging for businesses in areas that have a high crime rate to receive coverage.
Commercial insurance companies use crime indexing to give ZIP codes a score.
If the score falls below a certain range, then they will not offer the business insurance.
“This treats everybody, every business in this massive ZIP code the exact same and when you do that, you’re basically discriminating against businesses that you shouldn’t be. You’re treating them the exact same. You have no idea what the risk is in that neighborhood,” said Shade Sullins, agent/co-owner of A&S Solutions.
The Raleigh Community Market may be closed Thursday but the manager said they plan on getting their store back open as soon as possible.
They created a GoFundMe page to help cover the costs of damage.
“We are not giving up,” Wilson said. “We have to stay focused and motivated to take care of our community.”
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Based in New York, Stephen Freeman is a Senior Editor at Trending Insurance News. Previously he has worked for Forbes and The Huffington Post. Steven is a graduate of Risk Management at the University of New York.