Caught on camera: Suspect destroys San Jose bakery equipment, attacks customer

Peter’s Bakery in San Jose posted surveillance video showing a man go into their business and destroy some of their equipment. That same man then tackles a customer to the ground who was recording him.

The bakery says the suspect entered trying to sell cleaning wipes and they asked for his contact information. That’s when they say the man started yelling at their staff and threw some of their equipment on the floor.

The bakery says he did about $2,000 in damage but didn’t stop there.

As he exits, the footage shows a customer following him out, recording him on her phone. The man turns back and tackles her to the ground, smashing her phone on the sidewalk. Police say it happened on Dec. 17 and the customer needed medical attention.

The attacker is still out there. Peter’s Bakery just posted the video on social media asking for the public’s help identifying the man. The video has prompted reaction online and among neighboring businesses.

Tim works at sushi town just a couple of doors down. The bakery believes the man in the video is homeless. Businesses told NBC Bay Area there are often several unhoused individuals in the area.

 “I have a homeless woman sitting in front of my door all the time, and I try to call the police all the time, but nobody takes care of this,” Tim said.

Back in May, surveillance video outside of Peter’s Bakery captured a man strike a 15-year-old boy in a random attack. Police said the man was unhoused. Meantime, businesses have also faced break-ins in the last few years.

The owner of Eastside Barber Shop says she’s been broken into three times but adds security cameras have helped. Last year the city announced it was giving security cameras to businesses in alum rock. Still, business owners want to see more patrols in the area.

“More police enforcement, more people to care about the local environment,” Tim said.

Councilman Peter Ortiz told NBC Bay Area he’s pushing for additional officers to patrol east San Jose and he’s working with the police department and the DA’s office to tell a forum on public safety concerns in east San Jose.