King of Pops robbed for the third time

By Nathan Cushing Paul Cassimus is getting used to being robbed. The founder of King of Pops in RVA, Cassimus’s Scott’s Addition commissary and office at 3001 W. Clay Street has been burgled three times in as many weeks. “It’s pretty crazy,” Cassimus said by phone earlier this week. The first robbery was a shock. […]

November 1, 2013; 7:55 AM • by West of the Boulevard News

By Nathan Cushing

Paul Cassimus is getting used to being robbed. The founder of King of Pops in RVA, Cassimus’s Scott’s Addition commissary and office at 3001 W. Clay Street has been burgled three times in as many weeks.

“It’s pretty crazy,” Cassimus said by phone earlier this week. The first robbery was a shock. The second was “pretty rough, just because why again?” he said. The third time? “I was kind of used to it.”

The first burglary occurred Sunday, October 6th. The following day, Cassimus arrived and “saw the door had been kicked through; my desk had been rummaged through with the drawers pulled out.” Luckily, the only items of value stolen were petty cash and an HP Pavillion laptop. Cassimus noted that checkbooks had also been taken.

His space was again burgled later that week, albeit with less criminal success. “I don’t think they got anything,” Cassimus said. “It seemed like he went straight to the desk and drawers and got out of there.” Following the second burglary, Cassimus purchased an ADT security system.

That security system failed last Sunday when Cassimus was robbed for a third time. Cassimus believes one person is responsible for each break-in. “I think it’s the same person, because I can’t imagine three separate groups of people breaking in,” he said.

While Cassimus hasn’t lost cash revenue from his King of Pops cart as a result of the break-ins, his insurance deductibles and the cost of the new security system have eaten away savings he’d squirreled away to use during the slower fall and winter months.

However, earlier this week someone cashed three $350 checks in Cassimus’s name. Those checks likely came from the checkbooks stolen during the first burglary. The King of Pops owner hopes the false checks will help lead detectives to the thief.

Despite three break-ins in recent weeks, Cassimus said he’s not leaving Scott’s Addition. “It really hasn’t crossed my mind,” he said. He’s invested a lot of money and time into the property, and there’s no guarantee burglaries won’t follow him even if he does leave. “There’s always a chance of getting broken into at another place,” he said.