Police: Masked Bandit Strikes Sarcone’s Bakery In Italian Market

Is nothing sacred? First there was the drunken vandalism at Jim’s Steaks on South Street. Then there was the robbery at Ishkabibble’s II, also on South Street. And now, a would-be robber has struck South Philadelphia’s iconic Sarcone’s Bakery in the Italian Market.

Unlike most caught-on-camera miscreants, like the Northern Liberties bubbly bandit and the Old City bar tunneler, this particular ne’er–do–well actually managed to be pretty decently disguised, so much so that it’s hard to say much about the person behind the mask. But what we do know is that this individual showed up at Sarcone’s Bakery on May 11th with bad intents.

According to police, the suspect arrived at 2:30 a.m. and fiddled with the door, trying to get it to open. That didn’t work, so the masked individual just broke the glass, waltzing through the shattered remains:

The perpetrator also fiddled ineffectively with the cash register inside Sarcone’s:

And we have to wonder, does a store really leave a bunch of bills in a cash register overnight?

Eventually, he or she fled without a thing to show for the after-hours caper:

And police say this wasn’t the burglar’s first time. On May 1st at 2:30 a.m., the suspect allegedly stole some cell phones from a phone store at 642 Washington Avenue and then money and merchandise from City Pizza at 2700 South 16th Street on May 2nd at 4:15 a.m. At the phone store, the suspect spent about 20 minutes try to get inside before kicking the door in. And at the pizza place, the suspect worked for about 15 minutes trying to get the door open before smashing the glass. So, disguise skills, 10, but lock-picking skills, 0.

Watch the full surveillance video released by police from all three incidents below. And if you recognize the doer, which seems pretty unlikely, call the South Detective Division at 215-686-3013.