Burglars ram SUV into Palo Alto Apple store in smash-and-grab raid

A group of 8 to 10 burglars reportedly rammed a rented Kia Soul into the Palo Alto Apple store over the weekend, stealing numerous Macs and iPhones.

The incident happened before dawn on Sunday, according to The Mercury News. Police found the Soul on the sidewalk with major damage, and a shattered hole in the store's glass facade. After setting up a perimeter officers located a Hyundai Sonata in an alley half a block away, with Macs and iPhones littered both inside and outside of the vehicle.

Only four people have been arrested so far, at least three of them from Oakland, and two of them under the age of 18. The two adults — Shaquin K. Ferguson and Erica Jaynisha White — are 19 and 18, respectively. Ferguson was already on parole for weapons violations, but none of the suspects have been linked to other Apple store thefts in the region.

Apple spokesman Nick Leahy said the shop would reopen later on Monday, even though its windows are now boarded up, and police still don't know the value of everything that was stolen or damaged.

Smash-and-grab robberies have been a recurring problem for Apple, as the company's use of glass facades can make it comparatively easy to break in. The Palo Alto store and some other outdoor outlets have bollards to deter against vehicles, but in the latest attack, the thieves simply drove onto the sidewalk of a nearby business first before veering in.

The outlet has been robbed several times in the last six months — in those cases, though, the thieves just rushed in during store hours, took devices, then left.