By KIM HAGAN
Similar circumstances of recent business burglaries have the Orem Police Department suspecting the crimes were committed by the same group or person.
Three Orem businesses within blocks of each other were targeted for burglary Monday night. Money was stolen from one business, and the other two were searched.
The door of a business around 450 E. University Parkway was pried open for entry Monday night. The thieves took $211 from the cash register, said Lt. Doug Edwards, public information officer of the Orem Police Department.
Souper Salads, 260 E. University Parkway, was one of the businesses that was also broken into, but nothing was taken from it, Edwards said. Its door was also forced open.
Across the street at 250 E. University Parkway, a fabric store was also entered forcibly. The office was searched, but nothing was found missing, Edwards said. He would not comment on the availability of cash in these stores.
The police do suspect that these businesses were broken into by the same person or group, Edwards said.
All three of the break-ins were on University Parkway and only blocks apart. Two of the Monday night break-ins happened across the street from one another. The third was committed just two blocks away.
The method of entry in all three cases was by forcing the dead bolt lock on the front door, Edwards said.
Similar Orem break-ins occurred earlier this summer in the area of 800 North, Edwards said. In these burglaries the thieves also entered through the front door by forcing the dead bolt lock, Edwards said.
The recent burglaries could be connected to the summer break-ins, Edwards said. The criminals could be back in town or out and about again, he said.
Two other businesses in Orem were burglarized earlier this week, but were not entered by forcing the door open.
At 400 S. State a business was broken into by cutting a door chain with bolt cutters, Edwards said. An undetermined amount of cash was taken. This is the second break-in suffered by this business, and the police are investigating the possibility that someone working for the business could have done it, Edwards said.
He also said the second burglary could be due to chance or could be a repeat performance from the first burglary.
Friday night saw another business burglarized in Orem. The break room window of car dealership located at 1000 S. State was broken to gain entry. An undisclosed amount of money was stolen, Edwards said.
