Brazen burglar steals beef jerky

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - A bizarre burglary has police looking for a beef jerky bandit after surveillance video shows a wig-wearing man taking extreme measures to make sure nothing stood between him and his favorite late-night snack.

Early Monday morning surveillance video at Mike’s Jerky on Menaul near Juan Tabo in northeast Albuquerque captured a convertible whipping through the parking lot. A man, wearing a wig, gets out and means business.

The video shows the man grabs a brick from his backseat. He throws it at the glass door several times and then rams his foot through the bottom half. With just enough room to get in the man squeezes through the shards of glass, slides in the store and goes for the goods.

The store’s owner Michael Grier said he was stunned when he saw the video.

“We knew he put a lot of effort into it because he was wearing a wig, he had on glasses,” Grier said.

Grier said more than 20 flavors of beef jerky line the walls of his store. He said its enough to satisfy many cravings but he never thought in his wildest dreams it would lead to someone cooking-up a plan like this.

“These are some of our more common ones our lemon pepper, garlic pepper, mesquite,” Grier said.

He said the beef jerky bandit knew what he was looking for.

“He grabbed all these, these ones were full the pepper and the salt of course,” Grier said. “Then he passed up all of these to go over her for the bacon [flavored] .”

Grier said the bacon flavor has been out for only four weeks. It’s an original blend he concocted. Grier said he wonders if the beef jerky bandit is a huge beef jerky fan or if he's just out to make a profit.

“I don't put anything past anybody when it comes to thievery,” Grier said.

Grier said the man could probably make a few hundred bucks selling the stolen beef jerky. He hopes someone recognizes him before he makes a profit off of his work.

If anyone has any information about the crime you are asked to call police.