Video captures thief stealing from Vancouver restaurant employees’ locker room

Zaatar w Zeit says this is the first time employees have been robbed while working and it is concerned about employee safety and retention.

A Vancouver business is trying to bring awareness to the plight of downtown shop owners and perhaps encourage others to increase their security after its employees had their belongings stolen from its locker room.

Surveillance video of Zaatar w Zeit’s back room on Monday morning around 8:45 a.m. shows a man dressed in a black hat and jacket, green pants and white sneakers.

He pauses briefly to peer around the corner before casually walking towards the employee lockers, checking into rooms and over his shoulder as he walks. He then proceeds to rifle through and take two bags and a jacket before making a hurried exit.

This isn’t the first time the business has had to deal with theft, with other videos showing people walking in and attempting to steal items before being confronted by staff and fleeing or becoming violent.

Zaatar w Zeit’s director Joanne Zarife says the business experienced some level of crime from when it opened in 2019, but saw a sharp decline late last year. However, a few months ago, incidents began to rise.

“It’s horrible,” she said.

“We already have to deal with increasing wages, increasing taxes, and now we have to deal with safety and recruiting employees and make sure you’re going to be safe here.”

She says last year staff were scared to come to work after a man was stabbed to death by a stranger at the Starbucks next door, but this is the first time her employees have been robbed. She points to homelessness as a main issue.