Simi Valley police searching for smash-and-grab thief who targeted Macy’s store

SIMI VALLEY, Calif. (KABC) — A terrifying smash-and-grab robbery was captured on video at a Simi Valley mall in the middle of the holiday shopping rush.

Cellphone video caught the moment when a man started violently breaking a glass case at a Macy’s store with what police described as a pickaxe-style hammer.

The incident happened Wednesday around 6:30 p.m. at the Simi Town Center Mall.

Police say the suspect was briefly confronted nearby shoppers, and then ran off with a duffle bag.

He was last seen hopping a fence to a nearby apartment complex in the 1500 block of Jefferson Way.