A collectibles store in Anaheim, Calif., was burglarized after thieves forced entry through an adjacent business and cut a large opening through shared drywall assemblies to access merchandise. The incident highlights growing risk exposure for retail tenants using lightweight interior partitions that can be breached with hand tools, in a story by Amy Powell from Channel 7 News Los Angeles.

Police are searching for three suspects involved in the February break-in at Do-We Collectibles on Harbor Boulevard. Surveillance footage shows the suspects smashing glass display cases around 3 a.m., then rapidly removing trading cards before fleeing. The entire theft took less than 10 minutes, demonstrating how quickly high-value, small-format inventory can be removed once access is gained.

Store owner Duy Pham said the suspects first entered the neighboring unit before creating a penetration point through the drywall. For contractors and property managers, this type of breach illustrates a common vulnerability in commercial tenant demising walls, particularly where gypsum board assemblies lack reinforced backing or security-rated layers.

“They took a lot of smaller, single cards, and it adds up quickly in value,” Pham said. “All of our display cases were empty.” He estimates merchandise losses at roughly $20,000, not including interior repair costs for drywall replacement, paint finishing, and display case damage.

The incident follows similar theft activity in other Southern California collectible retailers. In January, thieves broke into a Simi Valley store, forcing entry through glass display fixtures and taking approximately $500,000 in inventory. Such events reflect rising secondary-market pricing for high-end collectibles, which increases pressure on retailers to upgrade physical security systems.

Industry experts note retailers are increasingly considering security improvements during tenant improvement projects, including reinforced wall assemblies, security-rated doors, and monitored alarm integrations to reduce response time after forced entry.

Law enforcement continues investigating.