Thieves target Cleveland vintage shop, leaving owner with shattered door and $2,000 recovery bill

Spooky Studio on West 25th Street is trying to recover following a break-in earlier this week.

Cleveland Police said it received an alarm at approximately 2:33 a.m. Tuesday.

Upon CPD's arrival, they observed that a front door was broken/shattered, police said.

Spooky Studio owner Lexi Ross said her landlord called her shortly after to tell her that police were at her shop.

"I woke out of my sleep, and I ran here, got here as fast as I could, and I get here and the door is basically half glass, half open hole," Ross said.

Ross said not only did she lose several unique vintage clothing articles, but also cash.

One of the items missing is a Browns jersey representing Lee Suggs from the '90s.

"[They] were out in two minutes. They were pros. They knew what they were doing, in and out, went right to the register, pried it open, and then got out of here and the police showed up 20 minutes later," Ross told me on Wednesday. "They're good at what they do. They got out with a lot of heart and a lot of soul."

Her surveillance cameras weren't working at the time of the break-in, but a neighboring building managed to catch the crime on tape.

A still picture from that surveillance shows two men in hoodies, one in red and one in black.

"I felt in shock yesterday (Tuesday) because I got here at 2:30 in the morning, and I didn't leave until they could board up the door at like 3 or 4 p.m. So like, I'm running on no sleep and a little in shock, but like, I always think if they needed it that bad, they're probably in a horrible position, and so, I'm not mad or anything," Ross said.

As of Wednesday, no one has been arrested in connection with the break-in.

Ross said she's still working on getting an estimate for her front door that is now boarded up.

Ross does plan to reopen on Saturday, Nov. 7.

To incentivize the community to come out, she's offering a 25% discount off everything in her store.

"The awareness would be amazing for me, and just hopefully people come out Saturday and get my heart, you know, pumping a little bit," Ross said.

She also hopes her store can bring back nostalgia for customers.

Another way to help Ross recover is through donating on GoFundMe.

She's trying to raise roughly $2,000.

"I have a GoFundMe. I didn't want to. This is my first time I ever had something like that. My friends and family kinda asked me to because I don't ask for help myself. That's gonna cover the expenses of the door, however much that's going to be, all the merchandise I lost, all the cash I lost, fixing the register," Ross said.

If you have any information regarding the suspect, call Cleveland Police Second District at (216) 623-5200.