‘It’s just so disheartening:’ Lexington business burglarized

LEXINGTON, Ky. (WKYT) - A Lexington family has been hit not once, but twice, by burglars at their local businesses.

Java Jukebox on Maxwell Street was hit early Thursday morning.

Local musician Lane Allen opened his Java Jukebox Café and Eatery back in July with a main goal in mind.

“Louisville has a really strong community right now around music and my main focus is to bring that to Lexington,” owner Lane Allen said.

He wants to create an inviting atmosphere for musicians and music lovers alike. But early Thursday morning, the wrong sort of person invited themself in.

“I just instantly was shocked. The moment I saw the door was broken, I busted out in tears it’s just so disheartening,” Allen said.

Allen says someone broke in and stole his register, taking off with $400. To make matters worse, the person shut off the store’s circuit breakers, ruining $1,500 worth of products stored in his fridges.

While the experience has been disheartening, Allen has hopes that they will find the person responsible, and that’s because he says a neighboring business has captured them on surveillance video.

He says the person first appeared around 2:00 a.m. and then returned around 4:00 a.m. with a hoodie and a mask on, and a hammer in hand.

Allen says he devotes 84 hours a week to his new business and he can’t comprehend why someone would do this to him.

“Having a setback like this just ruins my motivation,” Allen said.

But he hopes he will learn from it and grow stronger.

“They say the worst comes so you can find the appreciation in the greatest,” Allen said.

Allen said it’s been a difficult time for his family because his brother owns Cold Collection Vintage, which was burglarized back in August. He said thousands of dollars in high-end shoes were stolen in that incident.

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