Vehicle rams into Vancouver business in apparent break-in attempt

An apparent break-in attempt in which would-be thieves crashed a vehicle into the entrance of a Vancouver business was caught on camera early Monday morning.

Olivia Yau co-owns Urban Machina, an electric scooter shop that was gearing up for its busy summer season. She estimates the damage done will force the store to close for as long as a month.

"Maybe to them it's worth the risk because they get away with scooters. Maybe it's not even their car and they don't care about it. But at a time like this, for small businesses struggling, this just adds another blow," she told CTV News.

Surveillance video captured the moment what looks like an SUV rammed into the small business' front doors at 4 a.m., showing the car hitting the double doors head-on, shattering the glass and seemingly dislodging them from their frame. The vehicle then backs up, and two people can be seen looking at the security gate.

Then, the vehicle drives into the entrance one more time and is again stopped by the metal gates. A dislodged bumper can be seen at the scene along with piles of shattered glass and bent-put-of-shape doors.

While nothing was stolen and no one was hurt, Yau says she has been left shaken.

"The gate was secured," she said. "They just drove off. It's very scary to think that something would happen like this."

The incident was reported to police, Yau said, which she hopes will lead to whoever was responsible being found.

"Hopefully, these people will get caught and they're not going to try again with another business," she said.

“Targeting small businesses is definitely not okay…Everyone's just trying to make a living here."

A spokesperson for the Vancouver Police Department said the incident is being investigated by the property crimes unit.

"It appears to be an attempted smash and grab. Witnesses reported seeing a vehicle ram the front doors of this business around 4 a.m. today," Sgt. Steve Addison said in an email, adding that nothing was stolen and that the security gates seem to have done their job and deterred anyone from getting inside.

With files from CTV News Vancouver Staff