Asian business owner in Oakland frustrated by latest burglary — ‘We’re under siege’

OAKLAND — Two Asian-owned businesses run by the same family were ransacked in Oakland early Wednesday morning.

They said it’s not the first time they’ve been hit by burglars. One of the owners told KPIX he feels helpless. 

The side-by-side businesses that have been operated by the family for three decades suffered side-by-side break-ins. 

The two brothers who run Woody’s Laundromat & Cafe on the 1800 block of Park Boulevard in Oakland got a call early Wednesday morning that no Bay Area business owner wants to get.

“I got a call around 5 in the morning and i knew it was not going to be good,” said one of the owners, Robert Ma.

Security footage shows a group of people lingering outside the businesses Wednesday before 5 a.m. They eventually break into both businesses.

“When I arrived, OPD was already here. That made me feel safe. Otherwise i would not have entered the store,” Ma explained.

The thieves smashed windows, ransacked both businesses and stole cash. Ma said this is not the first time he’s been hit like this.

“We were also targeted about a year and a half ago,” he said.

The repeat burglary just adds to the feeling that he and other Asian-owned businesses in Oakland have no options.

“Right now as a citizen in Oakland, especially for Asian people, we are under siege, man,” said Ma. “I knew it was just a matter of time before they hit our place. If you’re in business in Oakland, it’s to be expected.”

While Ma appreciated Oakland police officers getting to his business quickly, he says it doesn’t make up for the overall lack of accountability he says he sees all too often.

“I don’t even feel safe walking around in broad daylight. I don’t care. Even crowded places,” Ma said. “It’s lawlessness. That’s not a society that i want to live in.” 

No arrests have been made in this case and no suspect descriptions have been released by authorities at this point.