Stories of robberies at pizzerias and other quick-service restaurants are as plentiful as the stores themselves. Such sad sagas are read daily in local papers from coast to coast.
In Houston in 2004, two separate robbery sprees targeting QSRs had police scrambling to nab a man local media dubbed “the fast-food bandit.” In a short period, the man robbed 15 fast-food restaurants, including branches of Wendy’s, Taco Bell, CiCi’s Pizza, Subway and McDonald’s. That same year, six armed robberies took place at Subway restaurants in New York during a four-day stretch in July, earning the perpetrator the media nickname “the Subway bandit.”
Why quick-service restaurants are such common targets is clear: they’re cash magnets.
“Whenever you have an operation that’s open late at night or 24 hours a day, that has a lot of customer foot traffic through the store, and where there’s cash available, you’re going to find higher crime potential at those locations,” said Robert Figlio, Ph.D., chief executive of CAP Index Inc., provider of crime-based risk assessment.
Chris McGoey, president of Los Angeles-based McGoey Security Consulting, added that QSRs are attractive targets for thieves because their designed for quick ingress and egress.
“Criminals want to get the money and get away,” McGoey said. “QSRs fit the bill perfectly.”
Most fast-food chains have developed a standard menu of security hardware and equipment for all stores, including video surveillance systems, alarm systems, time-delay safes and robbery-prevention training. But if managers and employees aren’t trained to use them or expected to follow them, such investments are for naught.
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