At least one cat-burglar broke into the One Love Animal Hospital in Boerum Hill early Wednesday morning and bagged a wad of cash, according to the authorities.
The looter — or looters — smashed the glass door with a brick and nabbed some $200 from the healthcare facility between Smith and Hoyt streets on Atlantic Avenue around 5:50 am, according to a spokeswoman for the Police Department.
Police rushed to the scene and found the busted entrance and the front desk in disarray, but didn’t catch the purloiner. The crime remains under investigation, according to the spokeswoman.
Four-legged patients were left unharmed, she added, and there were no reports of any missing furballs.
Staff at the animal hospital in the brownstone neighborhood did not respond to a phone call, but an employee at the company’s Bay Ridge outlet said she was in disbelief about the break-in.
“Unbelievable,” said the woman, who did not provide her name. “The owners are close friends of mine so I’ll let them know.”
Burglaries of commercial buildings have increased dramatically during the coronavirus outbreak. Citywide incidents spiked 75 percent from March 12 — when Mayor Bill de Blasio declared a state of emergency and shuttered non-essential businesses — through March 31, the Wall Street Journal reported.
During that time, 254 commercial burglaries were reported — up from 145 that time last year.
In Brooklyn’s 84th Precinct, where Wednesday’s break-in occurred, burglaries are up close to 21 percent year-to-date, according to NYPD data. During a 28-day period ending April 12, burglaries in the area spiked 250 percent — up 10 incidents to 14 from just four during the same time period in 2019.
