Rantz: After break-ins and gun pulled on staff, biz owner runs for office

The Bistro Baffi restaurant in Normandy Park suffered its third break-in. The co-owner has had enough: Now he’s running for office.

Nirav Sheth said the most recent break-in occurred this past Saturday morning. Three men in masks, hoodies, hats and gloves opened the patio door with a pry bar. Once inside, they immediately split up and got to work. One man went for the cash register, and the other two headed to the other side of the restaurant. Sheth said they went through drawers to find anything valuable they could steal, and took off with cash and alcohol.

“They were trying to pry in comfortably because they know nothing’s going to happen. They’re so comfortable committing crime, it’s like they’re doing a job,” Sheth told The Jason Rantz Show on KTTH. “And that surprised everyone. And they just got in. They had gloves on. Masks on. They were professionals. And just for $300. They have damaged $6,000 worth of stuff. And this is the third time in the last 12 months.”

Surveillance footage of the incident, shared with The Jason Rantz Show, caught one burglar struggling to get into the cash register. He eventually cut the wires and took the entire register. 

Crime hits his other business, too

Several months ago, Sheth’s other business, a Meineke Car Care Center, was also hit.

He said that four individuals at his Des Moines business were trying to steal cars from the parking lots. He says his staff caught them in the act. After two of his managers “intervened,” he says they were attacked.

“Both managers got attacked by those perps and one of them pulled a gun on managers. It happened at 3 p.m. on a busy street, Pacific HWY in Des Moines. One manager [suffered a] broken nose and another one [a] concussion,” he said. 

His other Meineke Car Care Centers — in Silverdale and Gig Harbor — have also been hit multiple times (5 and 12 respectively) in the last 12 to 18 months.

The Bistro Baffi restaurant in Normandy Park suffered it's third break-in. But the business owner tells me his other business was also hit back in April. After his managers tried to intervene during an alleged car robbery, the suspect pulled a gun on them. pic.twitter.com/Q9wN8neW3T

— Jason Rantz on KTTH Radio (@jasonrantz) August 28, 2023

Running for office

Sick of the crime in his area, Sheth, a former Lakewood police officer, announced he’s running to unseat Rep. Kim Schrier (D-WA 08), a Democrat who has been relatively silent on the crime crisis Democrat reforms helped create.

“I decided for Congress, [because of] the impact I can bring from Washington DC is more impactful… I personally am a victim myself. And I’m not just going to stand and watch,” he said.

While he’s running as a Republican, he doesn’t see issues through a partisan lens. But he has noticed that Washington state has deteriorated, thanks to growing crime, drug abuse, and homelessness, under one-party rule. 

“What [voters] want is justice, a stable society, a good economy, and a safe neighborhood for the kids, and better education for the kids. This is all everybody wants. It doesn’t matter if you’re Democrat, or Republican. People are people. And that is the reason I’m running,” he said. 

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Listen to The Jason Rantz Show on weekday afternoons from 3:00 p.m.–7:00 p.m. on KTTH 770 AM (HD Radio 97.3 FM HD-Channel 3). He is the author of the book “What’s Killing America: Inside the Radical Left’s Tragic Destruction of Our Cities.” Subscribe to the podcast. Follow @JasonRantz on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. Check back frequently for more news and analysis.

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