Burglars repeatedly target SF Tenderloin's Asian-owned shop, costing hundreds in damages each time

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- An Asian-owned sandwich shop in San Francisco's Tenderloin district is under siege as burglars have been targeting the business at least twice a week for the past several months.

It has gotten so bad at Lee's Sandwiches that every window up front has been boarded up by plywood.

Inside, merchandise has been cleared off shelves for safe-keeping.

The executive director of the Tenderloin Merchants Association says the burglars have stolen hundreds of dollars in merchandise in every break-in and caused major damage to property.

He says it is happening so often, the shop owners have stopped calling police.

Other Asian-owned Tenderloin businesses have been hit too.

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"Right now the sentiment in the community is that the Asian community is an easy target because it's safe to steal from them, because you're not going to get hurt and you're not going to get caught," said Rene Colorado with the Tenderloin Merchants Association.

Rene Colorado says the burglars have also figured out when the association's community ambassadors patrol the neighborhood.

Break-ins are timed before ambassadors start their shifts.

Those ambassadors have recently started wearing bulletproof vests after one was held up at gunpoint.

The group is now asking Mayor London Breed for more funding to expand the program, and calling on Supervisor Dean Preston's support.

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