SAN DIEGO (KGTV) - Plumbers and contractors have been targeted in a string of vehicle break-ins and thefts in the Serra Mesa area.
Earlier this week, Scotti Fiori had $3,000 worth of tools stolen from his van. Fiori has owned his plumbing business since 1990, and he told 10News the business is “my life, it’s who I am … it’s just a one-man shop.”
Fiori said he believes the thieves knew what they were doing.
“They mainly took the most expensive items. It’s almost like they knew what to look for,” said Fiori.
The alarm was set on Fiori’s van, but the thieves were able to get around it.
“It’s a big hit. I’m thankful that I have credit. I can go out and replace it with credit, but that’s $3,000 I’m out for the month,” Fiori told 10News.
Fiori, though, was not alone.
Jordan McKiernan told 10News his plumbing van, which was parked less than two minutes up the road from Fiori’s vehicle, was broken into. He said at least $2,000 worth of tools were taken.
Since the break-in, McKiernan said he installed a special lock in hopes of keeping thieves away.
A third person in the same area posted on social media that his work van was hit.
Fiori said, "I just have to be thankful that I still have work, I can get up in the morning and go to work."
His message to the thieves: “I feel bad for them, if that’s what they have to do.”
Fiori told 10News similar crimes happened a few years ago where several plumbing vans were broken into in the neighborhood.
