Popular juice bar in Oakland hit three times by burglars

OAKLAND, Calif. - The staff at Got Juice in Oakland's Laurel District kept busy Wednesday, making juices, shakes, and smoothies even as their storefront was covered in plywood because of another break-in.

"Took our cash register, rifled through the store," said co-owner Brandon McCoy, referring to the store's third burglary since it opened during the pandemic in 2020.

"They apparently tried to bash through, bash through, bash through, that didn’t work, so they came here and whatever they had in their hand, they just threw it directly through the window, and jumped through," McCoy said.

The intruder had one target in mind. 

"The cash register, yet again," McCoy said.

But the burglar didn't get much, just some loose change and bills. That's because Got Juice near 38th Avenue and MacArthur Boulevard got smart after two previous break-ins last year.

During the first burglary, the thief made off with about $400.

"It’s infuriating, it’s frustrating, because we’re Oakland natives, we’re born and raised here, we went to school here, we create a community to give back," McCoy said.

Giving back, only to have criminals come back repeatedly.

"It costs money, it costs time, it costs effort, it’s an inconvenience, an it’s like shameful," McCoy said.

He says he doesn't believe his business should be a prime target.

"This is a juice bar. We don’t carry any merchandise. We don’t have a drop safe. We don’t have anything that’s really worth taking," he said.

The juice bar now only accepts cards, not cash, to ensure safety of its workers.

A vacant barber shop and spa next door were also vandalized. 

Longtime customers have been flocking to the juice bar to show support. 

"We lose a lot of these businesses here because of vandalism and we all need to experience," said customer Jamie Williams. "You have to go outside of Oakland to get a juice? Come on now. We want to keep it."

Danielle Robles agreed, saying, "It’s just really rude and disrespectful. And it’s our community, and we want to keep our community, our Oakland stores nice and safe so we can have access."

McCoy has a message for whoever is responsible. 

"Could you please stop? We’re here trying to make a living, trying to provide things to people, here, from here, and it’s setting us back," he said.