Santa Rosa police respond to burglaries of 2 Santa Rosa dispensaries minutes apart

A group of people eluded law enforcement early Monday after attempting to perform back-to-back thefts of Santa Rosa dispensaries, police said.

Investigators with the Santa Rosa Police Department believe the two attempted burglaries, reported just seven minutes apart, are connected, according to a news release from the agency.

At about 3:36 a.m., a group of people dressed in dark clothing and wearing ski masks rammed a vehicle into the entrance of the Durametrics dispensary, in northwest Santa Rosa.

The suspects were stopped from gaining entry due to a second interior door, then fled in vehicles before police arrived.

At 3:43 a.m., an alarm was triggered at another dispensary, Phenotopia, at Dutton and Sebastopol roads.

A sergeant arrived “within seconds” and observed two men leaving the dispensary with stolen goods, the release said. They got into Infiniti and Kia sedans when they saw police and sped away onto southbound Highway 101.

The Kia, which investigators later discovered was stolen out of Oakland, had a smashed rear window, damaged bumper and did not have a license plate, police said.

The sergeant and assisting agencies ― including California Highway Patrol, Sonoma County Sheriff’s Department and Petaluma Police Department ― pursued the sedans as they reached speeds of over 100 mph.

The Kia eventually stopped near the highway’s South Petaluma Boulevard exit, where officers had deployed spike strips. The driver then took off on foot.

The driver was not found, police said.

Santa Rosa police officers continued its pursuit of the Infiniti sedan to the Marin County line, where CHP continued the pursuit.

It was not immediately clear Monday if that driver was arrested.

Officers are working to identify all involved suspects.

The attempted theft and successful burglary come about six months after a series of eight or more large-scale weed burglaries or robberies in Sonoma County.

Reps from the Santa Rosa Police Department, the Sonoma County District Attorney’s Office and other local leaders met Feb. 2 with multiple local cannabis-related business owners to talk about police response to the thefts and allow the businesses to air grievances.

At the end, it boiled down to police ― who said they were committed to protecting these legal businesses ― asking for owners to cooperate with law enforcement and to up security at their locations.

On Monday, Santa Rosa Police Chief John Cregan said communication between police and dispensary owners has increased since the February meeting.

“We've been able to share back and forth with our property crimes team and these businesses, about enhancements they can take with security ... and what some of the crime trends are that we're seeing across the Bay Area,” he said.

The pattern from the recent burglaries matches an ongoing trend where groups from other Bay Area locations come to Sonoma County to steal from businesses and then flee.

Investigators are still identifying suspects, including their places of residence, Cregan said.

“Our focus has been really on enhancements to the security at these establishments and then always assuring that we have a very proper response from the police department to see what we can do to catch these offenders in action,” Cregan said.

Nick Caston, director of public policy for the dispensary Solful, said Santa Rosa police stand out by being proactive.

“The chief himself reaches out and gets involved in order to respond and their officers respond to the crimes immediately... and they are working with operators on what types of hardening measures and security measures can actually prevent these types of break-ins,” said Caston, who is also a business consultant for other cannabis providers.

One such hardening measure, the business’ second interior door, was successful at preventing the theft, he noted.

Other specific security tips offered by police since the meeting included getting portable bollards, or posts used to prevent car ramming, for business entrances and attaching license plate reading software to security cameras.

“Fundamentally, the message that that sends to the criminals is this isn't the place to come,” he added.

The problem with these security suggestions, while many of them are effective at deterring burglaries, is they are expensive and are not tax deductible for cannabis-related businesses, Caston said.

“The cost is high,” he said, “but it’s important because the inventory and the coast for repairs for these types of break ins ... can also make or break a dispensary.”

Multiple businesses are working with the city to make these hardening improvements more affordable, Caston said.

The Santa Rosa Police Department is encouraging anyone with information regarding the burglaries to call the agency at 707-543-3600.

You can reach Staff Writer Madison Smalstig at madison.smalstig@pressdemocrat.com. Her Twitter is madi.smals.