Burglars strike up to 15 Wilmette businesses, police say

More than a dozen Wilmette businesses reportedly were struck during a rash of break-ins and burglaries overnight Wednesday to Thursday.

In a preliminary statement, Wilmette police told The Record that they believe late on Nov. 11 the same crew attempted to burglarize as many as 15 Wilmette businesses across two distinct areas of town.

More details were not immediately available; though, police said more information would be released on Thursday.

Central Station Coffee & Tea and Pit & Tap restaurant in downtown Wilmette were among the victimized businesses. In both cases, according to the respective business owners, a front window was broken to gain entry and at least one cash register was stolen.

Pit & Tap owner Michael Clarke said police called him around 7:30 a.m. Thursday to inform him of the break-in. He said offenders took two cash registers and two tablets.

The burglary, he added, was caught on the restaurant’s security cameras, which reportedly recorded at least four individuals dressed in dark clothing breaking in through a window, two of them entering the business and grabbing the items, another individual standing on the sidewalk and a car waiting outside the restaurant, 1168 Wilmette Ave.

“It’s very disheartening to have this happen and I feel like there is nothing that could’ve been done to prevent it from an owner’s perspective,” Clarke said in a message to The Record. “We have visible cameras on the exterior of the building, but it’s not a deterrent.”

At Central Station, the front door’s glass pane was shattered and a cash register was stolen, according to the shop’s Instagram account.

Central Station’s primary location, 1150 Central Ave., is closed Thursday, but it also has a satellite location inside the Wilmette Metra station.

Clarke said Pit & Tap hopes to reopen by happ hour.

Stay tuned to TheRecordNorthShore.org as this story develops.

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