BUCKTOWN— Fatima Mohiuddin, a manager at Apartment Number 9, a high-end boutique in Bucktown, received an early Thursday morning call from police saying her store had been burglarized. She said it was a sign of change in the neighborhood.
"This neighborhood has changed so much. Now we get a lot smash-and-grabs, along with credit card theft and people trying to pay for items with counterfeit bills," Mohiuddin said. "It goes to show you that this is a very different neighborhood now."
When Mohiuddin showed up at the boutique located at 1804 N. Damen Ave., she discovered that the front door was smashed in and several articles of clothing were gone.
According to Mohiuddin, the break-in was the first the boutique has had in 14 years at that location.
"Knock on wood, we've been safe, but we haven't felt that way in a long time," Mohiuddin said. She did not want to disclose what was stolen, but said that the items "have a high turnaround rate on the street."
Mohiuddin, who has worked at Apartment Number 9 for the past ten years, said that she has seen an uptick in fraud recently.
She also said when anyone walks into the store these days, it puts her on edge about what could happen.
"Anyone not buying anything and just looking around puts you on edge," Mohiuddin said. "We don't want to stereotype people because we welcome everyone."
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