Popular Richmond bike shop closes after mysterious burglary

RICHMOND, Calif. (KRON) — A popular bike shop in Richmond has closed indefinitely following a burglary earlier this month with no signs of forced entry. The shop, Rich City Rides Bike Skate Shop, suffered at least $13,000 in losses.

Early on the morning of Saturday Jan. 13th, the shop’s co-founder Najari Smith walked into Rich City Rides and was shocked to find that most of his inventory had been cleared out.

“I looked over and saw there were bikes missing from the racks,” said Smith. “That our hanging display was about three-quarters empty.”

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The same went for the shelves in the back of the store. Helmets, locks, tools were all gone.

Smith co-founded the co-operative back in 2014. He says that over the years, attempts have been made to burglarize his shop on MacDonald Avenue.

But up until now, they have been unsuccessful.

“It’s the first time that anything was taken,” said Smith. There have been incidents where people have tried to break the windows. But to no avail.”

Unfortunately, this time they got in.

“Something else that shocked me is that the cameras on the inside of the shop were all disconnected, and there were no signs of forced entry,” Smith said. “The person had to have a key.”

“I suspect that it’s an inside job,” he added. “You know, I don’t want to point any fingers. I’m still waiting for more information. Subsequently, you know the locks had to be changed.”

Smith filed a report with the Richmond Police Department. In the meantime, he says the business was already struggling, having incurred more than $186,000 in debt over the years.

The theft has only made matters worse.

Smith launched an online fundraiser to help keep the business operational. It’s a shop known for supporting the community with organized bike rides and safety tutorials.

“We were looking to dissolve the cooperative so that we could pay all of that off and hopefully come back with a stronger plan,” he said. “And, I’m committed to having a bike shop here in the downtown area. It was a dream that we brought into fruition.”

This month, that dream turned into a nightmare.

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