Robert Kinney said his business was broken into multiple times by a man who stole thousands of dollars worth of office equipment.
AUSTIN, Texas — Joggers, bikers and even robbers can be seen through the windows of an office building on West 10th Street in downtown Austin.
“Well, last week we had a lot of robberies, starting with second-floor break-ins,” Robert Kinney said.
Kinney is the owner of Kinney Recruiting, a legitimate headhunting firm that has operated out of a downtown office for the past 16 years. He said he always feels safe there.
“Criminality isn't really an issue,” he says.
That was until two weeks ago. Kinney said that on March 14, someone broke a second-floor window into her office.
“He probably stole $5,000 worth of laptops and other things,” he said.
The only work left was broken glass.
Kinney said she reported the crime to the Austin Police Department (APD) because her security cameras were not working that night.
“Each officer was great in clearing the building,” Kinney said. “Clear the building and let us know what they thought we could do.”
Kinney said he made sure the security cameras were working after the first robbery.
“And then on Sunday morning, our friend actually came back,” he said.
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On March 17, Kinney's sense of security was shattered again by a man dressed in black and carrying heavy metal.
“Well, he tried all the windows. He broke these two windows and wreaked havoc,” he said.
When the man returned for the third time on March 19, Kinney said he began to worry about APD's response.
“It took them a week to appoint a detective. I'm not sure how serious they are about closing cases that amount to misdemeanors,” Kinney said.
KVUE reached out to APD, but the department declined to speak on camera. In a statement, they said that as soon as something is reported to APD, the report goes into the investigative division queue.
APD said several things can affect the duration of an incident, including how the incident is reported, the number of incidents on the unit and how responsive the supervisor is.
APD said it is working to assign the case within six business days and investigators will begin collecting evidence.
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But Kinney said she doesn't know how much priority nonviolent cases like hers receive.
“I'm concerned about other people as well. You know, the building here was robbed and it might have been the same gentleman,” he explained. “I believe there was a building off the coast of Baylor, and that was attacked as well.”
Kinney said she hopes to have more officers patrolling the downtown area in the future.
APD said anyone experiencing a similar situation should make sure their alarm system is activated and they have security cameras that can record.
APD said people should also write down the serial numbers of things like laptops and televisions, and keep valuables like cash out of sight. Business owners can also take additional measures, such as strengthening doors and brightening the store.
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