Main Street businesses victim of early morning break-in and burglary

FERNDALE, Wash. — Security video recorded a suspect of small build using a rock to create an opening in the glass front door at the retail location of Joe’s Sports Cards and Miles Woodworking Thursday morning. November 12th, according to Ferndale business owner Joe Miles.

Miles told My Ferndale News the video showed the burglar go directly to a product display of what he referred to as “hobby wax box” products and place several into a bag they had brought with them.

The burglar paid no attention to the cash register nor to multiple portable computers sitting nearby. “They knew exactly what they wanted and where to find it,” Miles said. Product taken was “all high-end stuff,” he added.

Miles said he took some satisfaction out of seeing the burglar struggle after they realized there was no back door. “They had to make their escape by way of the small hole in the front door and push the bag of stolen product through it,” Miles said.

The break-in occurred about 3am and a passerby noticed the broken glass door and called 911 to report it about 4am according to Miles.

Miles estimated his loss at about $18,000. He said the business is insured but he would have to pay a large deductible and would expect his insurance rates to go up if he filed a claim. He was worried it was not worth filing a claim as a result.

“Money is obviously concern but right now I’m more interested in nailing this [explicative],” Miles said. “If you are approached by someone selling hobby boxes or trading cards for a lot less than they should be, take their photo and call 911,” Miles advised.

The following is a list of the hobby wax box products taken:

Hobby Wax Box Product	Quantity Taken
2019 Optic Football	3
National Treasures Baseball	4
National Treasures Football	1
2019 National Treasures Football	1
2020 Illusions Football	3
2020 Prizm Draft Basketball	1
2020 Historic Autographs Hall of Fame All-Stars Baseball	2
2020 Contenders Baseball	10
2020 Phoenix Football	2
2020 XR Football	2
2020 Contenders Football	2
2020 Gold Standard Football	2
2020 Elements Football	2
2020 Elite Football	2
2019 Elite Elite Football	2
2019 Absolute Football	2
2020 Spectrum Football	1
2020 WNBA Prizm Basketball	2
2020 Optic Football	5

Miles said that, while he has been deeply troubled by the break-in and his financial loss, he has also been happily surprised by the outpouring of support from friends and customers, past and present, who have contacted him to say they were monitoring online sites where trading card products are frequently bought and sold.

Miles added that a glass repair business in Bellingham contacted him and offered to replace the destroyed glass front door at no cost. While he appreciated the offer, Miles had already replaced the door. “I invited him to join me for a coffee.” Miles is preparing to install an exterior security gate that will stretch the full width and height of his storefront to prevent this from happening again.

Ferndale Police continue to investigate and anyone with any information that may identify the suspect is asked to contact Ferndale Police Officer Brown at (360) 483-5731 or via email at sbrown@ferndalepd.org.

Miles shares the space with his son’s woodworking business. The businesses have been located at 2016 Main Street since moving there from Fairhaven in March of this year. Both remain open for business during their regular hours.