Oakland businesses threaten to stop paying taxes after slew of robberies until crime stops: 'Enough is enough'
A growing group of business owners in the Bay Area are declaring that they no longer want to pay taxes after a slew of robberies and thefts made them feel like the city wasn't doing enough to protect them.
Businesses in Oakland, California, have faced thefts and attacks in recent months.
"We're scared for our lives," Cybelle's Pizza manager Nestor Sanchez said, according to a KTVU report. "Now, Dimond District is not the same as the years I had been working."
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"We're really struggling. Sales have dropped 20%," Sanchez said.
Cybelle's Pizza was the subject of news stories after CCTV footage revealed the employees fought to defend themselves from a robber who attempted to jump over the counter to steal from the store in February.
The video also showed Sanchez taking out a hammer to scare off the robber as they entered the store and tried to make a grab for the cash register. Another employee then hurled a green recycling bin at the robber as the intruder escaped.
"Enough is enough. We're frustrated, so we're not going to pay taxes to the city until they give us what we want," Jose Ortiz, owner of La Perla Restaurant, told KTVU.
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"Hire a tax lawyer. He's going to be leading this group in case the city wants to come after us," Ortiz said.
Ortiz started "what he hopes will be a city-wide movement where business owners stop paying taxes to Oakland until they receive services, which include police patrols and cleaner streets," according to the report.
Dimond Cafe owner Paul Phan is supporting Ortiz in his movement to stop paying taxes to the city until officials do something to protect local businesses.
"I feel like we need to start somewhere. It's ridiculous. It seems like it's getting worse," Phan said.
Mayor Sheng Thao reportedly said in a statement that Oakland's business districts have actually "experienced a reduction in most property crimes" since the summer of 2023. She also said that "government at all levels is working for the Oaklanders and I won’t stop until every Oaklander feels safe in our city."
"We have an emergency in the city of Oakland," city council member Noel Gallo said.
"I'm not really sure if it will work, but I really want security," Sanchez said of the movement to stop paying taxes to the city.
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Thao's office, the Oakland Police Department and the City of Oakland did not respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
Fox Business' Greg Wehner contributed to this report.