Queen Street West coffee shop frustrated by repeated robberies, suspect in custody

Cesario Ginjo grew up not far from Sweetie Pie, the coffee shop and bakery he owns on Toronto’s Queen Street West, and says he loves the neighbourhood.

But lately, running a business there, one of nine locations he’s opened over the past three years, has been difficult after Ginjo says his employees have been subjected to five separate robberies over the past seven weeks, four of which he believes were committed by the same suspect.

On Wednesday, Ginjo organized a news conference inside his store, and said when he originally planned it, he hoped it would prompt police to do more to catch the thief. Turns out, on Wednesday morning, Ginjo got a call from Toronto police telling him someone had been arrested.

Ginjo couldn’t help but wonder if a call on Tuesday from Kevin Vuong, the member of Parliament for Spadina—Fort York, to the unit commander of Toronto police 14 division, where Sweetie Pie is located, prompted officers to finally make an arrest.

“We were called this morning that there was an arrest made. But they also did say that the person would be out within hours, so that doesn’t give us any comfort. He might just show up again,” an exasperated Ginjo said.

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On Wednesday, Toronto police announced that 41-year-old Sheldon Johnson of Toronto had been arrested and charged with two counts of theft under $5,000.

Police allege that on June 14, the suspect entered the store, headed straight to the cash register and stole cash before fleeing the store.

On July 8, at approximately 11:55 a.m., he is alleged to have entered the store, engaged staff in a conversation, approached the cash register and stolen cash from the register. He then fled the store.

Gingo says the robberies have escalated.

“The first time he came in, he grabbed the cash register. He threatened the girls, ripped the cash out….  The fourth time, he had his pants around his ankles, threatened the girls, told them to hide in the back and lock the door and he literally took his time, picking and choosing which iPad he wanted to steal. He was there for 20 minutes and he took them all. ”

Johnson has not been charged in relation to the theft of iPads.

He appeared in court Wednesday morning and was remanded into custody. He is scheduled to appear again on Aug. 23.

“Just the fact he’s so comfortable walking into my establishment and doing whatever he wants scares me. The point is, small businesses have it hard as it is. I work seven days a week and you know what? We feel hopeless sometimes. Just the fact this person comes in over and over and over and we can’t do anything,” Ginjo said.

“It comes from the top, the politicians. It comes from the mayor and on down. Because this is where decisions are made. The police don’t arbitrarily make decisions, we know that. They just follow the rules. I put it out there to Mayor Chow, what are we doing to do?

“I’m worried for my staff. That’s what goes through my head as an owner. That I’m going to get that call that one of my staff has been hurt,” said Ginjo, who estimates that the thefts have cost him roughly $10,000 in stolen cash, iPads, lost wages from employees who have taken time off, and extra wages because he’s had to double up on staff.

“If I feel that, ‘You know what? I can’t make a go out of it,’ then the doors will be locked. And if I lock my doors and the next person locks their doors, we’re going to have an abandoned street. You’re going to have boarded-up stores in a vibrant community.”

Vuong said he’s also concerned that the accused will be back out on the street shortly after being arrested.

“I think that catch and release needs to be addressed,” Vuong said.

Ginjo said the first time police officers attended his shop after being robbed, they commented that they weren’t surprised “because they’re coming from the safe injection site.” There is a supervised consumption site just a couple of blocks away on Bathurst Street just south of Queen Street.

Robert Sysak, the executive director of West Queen West BIA, which represents more than 300 merchants and business owners in the area, said they have a good relationship with the operators of the site.

“The issue isn’t violence but drug usage out in the open.”

In an effort to stop criminals, Ginjo is no longer accepting cash from customers and has a sign in the store that says, “No cash here!” He said his store manager has quit and is trying to provide emotional support to traumatized employees.

“We got lucky, nothing physical happened but we could be talking about something worse, and everybody would have looked back and said, ‘Geez, I wish I would have done that.’ We need everybody to work together to solve the problem.”