Thieves break into 3 Broward businesses, take cash

Authorities are investigating break-ins

DANIA BEACH. Fla. – Authorities are searching for two men they believe burglarized three Broward County businesses Sunday morning.

Billy’s Tavern in Davie, Tropical Acres Steakhouse in Dania Beach and the Cooper Colony Golf Club were targeted, authorities said.

"It just makes me upset because we're just a small business here,” Dawn Braeseke of Cooper Colony said. “We're a very small family-run business I don’t understand why people feel that it's OK to break in on somebody and take what they're working very hard for."

Deputies were called to Tropical Acres Steakhouse, located in the 2500 block of Griffin Road, at about 1:40 a.m. after burglaries tripped an audible alarm when they forced their way into the restaurant, according to the Broward Sheriff's Office. 

The restaurant’s manager saw the incident take place on surveillance video shortly after getting a call from an alarm company about the break-in, deputies said. He then told the company to call law enforcement.

Surveillance footage of the break-in shows two men using a crowbar and sledge hammer to pry the front door open, and using cellphone lights to search through an office.

Before leaving, one of the men pulled a cash register unit from the counter, deputies said.  The men then took off in opposite directions with the undisclosed amount of cash.

At about 6:45 a.m. deputies were called to the Cooper Colony Golf Club after an employee noticed a broken glass door when she arrived at work.

 "They kicked open this door, completely kicked it in half, went into our office, went through some files,” Braeseke  said. “We keep some money on the counter for the person on the following day so they took that."

Deputies believe the burglary took place between 1:45 a.m. and 6:45 a.m. Sunday.

The thieves used a rock to break a glass door at the rear entrance of the country club and then took $200 from a blue bag from an office, deputies said.

They then went to a bar area, removed two cash drawers but didn’t remove any money from them, deputies said. Instead, the burglars broke into two coin-operated arcade games and took an unknown amount of coins.

Several bags of cash were also taken from an office.

Braseke and other business owners hope that an arrest is made.

 "I know there's got to be somebody out there who knows who these people are," she said.

Authorities are searching for two men in relation to these burglaries. The first is described to be about 20 to 30 years old with a short buzz cut and was last seen wearing a light colored hooded sweater, white T-shirt, dark shorts and colorful Nike shoes.

The other man is said to be about 20 to 30 years old with short dark hair and a thick bread, He was last seen wearing a light colored hooded swearer, long dark pants and holding a sledge hammer.

Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 954-493-TIPS.