WHEAT RIDGE, Colo.-- Wheat Ridge Police are looking for the person responsible for breaking into and ransacking an adult day program facility. But despite the thousands in losses between the damage and theft, the happy ending to this story is already underway.
A Brighter Community in Wheat Ridge is back open, but it's been a dark week for them.
“The last couple of days have been so chaotic,” Co-owner Leah Martin said.
Chaotic because over the weekend someone broke into their building and spent hours inside and left a trail of damage in their wake.
“It was devastating to us. You know, we were disappointed. We were out raged. We felt violated,” she said
The facility runs day programs for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. They have already been hurt by the COVID-19 shutdown.
“We had to close for a couple of days and get things cleaned up and sanitized. Repair the bus and those kind of things,” Martin said.
This just added more to that pain.
“We have a hallway full of posters here of the people we serve. It is evident who this business is for and he walked in front of those time after time for hour after hour. So he knows who he affected,” she said.
They have surveillance of the suspect thanks to a neighbor, but with thousands of dollars in repair needed, they've already gotten a very generous response from the community.
“It’s been an amazing response. I think our community, as a whole, has been outraged,” she said.
More than $13,000 were raised in an online campaign in the first 24 hours to help.
“It’s something that feels good in a time where, right now, not much does feel good,” Martin said.
Now they just want to see the suspect caught and get back to focusing on the mission at hand.
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