Another Apple store smash and grab
A recent 31-second smash-and-grab robbery at a New Jersey Apple store is just the latest in a chain of similar crimes, proving the attractiveness of Apple’s hardware among even the criminal element.
When five masked men flawlessly executed a daring smash-and-grab robbery at the Apple retail store in Marlton, New Jersey one night last week, it added one more chapter to what has become a long story of similar robberies of Apple stores, according to a story in The Register. This particular group of five thieves was perhaps more talented than some of the earlier robberies in the disconnected chain: in their 31 seconds of fame, the Marlton five broke the glass door with a brick, quickly entered the store, and got away with 23 MacBook Pro computers, 14 iPhones, and 9 iPod Touch units. That would be just under $50,000 at retail in about half a minute, or somewhere in the vicinity of $1,500 per second.
This is just one in a long series of similar robberies, including those in Seattle, Washington; Memphis, Tennessee; Pasadena and Rancho Cucamonga, California; Cherry Hill, New Jersey; Kansas City, Missouri; Ardmore, Pennsylvania; Austin, Texas; Las Vegas, Nevada, as a partial list. It is apparent that small groups of thieves across a wide geographical area has recognized the intrinsic (and street resale) value of the more upscale electronic ideal represented by Apple hardware.
It is likely that Apple stores lend themselves to the quick break-the-door-and-grab style of robbery because of their extremely open floor plans and lack of any barriers between customers (and thieves) and the merchandise. Any store where five people can make off with $10,000 apiece in half a minute would have to be considered user-friendly. Perhaps Apple should consider “bullet-proof†glass in their doors, but it is exceedingly obvious that they have built a better-than-average customer mousetrap.
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