BELMONT, N.C. — A Belmont CBD store is sharing surveillance video of an attempted break-in at their store in hopes of capturing three suspects.
It happened around 5:15 a.m. Monday at Mellow Hemp Farms off Wilkinson Boulevard.
The video shows three people riding up to the store on bicycles and looking in through the store windows.
One person appears to reach his hand into the mail slot to try to open the door, but he wasn't successful. Soon after, a person appears to walk into frame holding a metal chair before he throws the chair at the window.
The group can be seen trying to break the glass two more times before running away.
Employees credit a large window decal for preventing the glass from shattering though it did form several cracks.
Store management agreed to share the video, but they declined to talk on-camera.
It's the third break-in/attempted break-in at a CBD store in Gaston County since April.
The first one happened at Blue Ridge CBD off South New Hope Road in Gastonia.
Gage Henson, who manages that store, said their surveillance cameras captured a group of three people approaching the store.
The video showed one man kicking and slamming into the front door multiple times before he finally broke through the door.
Gastonia Police said the group stole nearly $20,000 worth of products.
"It's one of those things that we can't really prevent, as of right now," Henson said. "People are going to do it, regardless."
He said the popularity and price of CBD products make stores attractive to criminals, and he said it's why his store and others invest in elaborate security systems.
He also believed a negative stigma towards CBD could make people apathetic to store break-ins.
"Being in this type of business, we're more vulnerable to things like that," Henson said.
Both cases remain under investigation, and anyone with information can call Crime Stoppers of Gaston County at 704-861-8000.