A Chicago business owner is vowing to get back on his feet after burglars stole $100,000 of film equipment from his production studio.
Frankie Fabre worked over a decade to open Fabre Studios in the city's River North neighborhood. Now the space he one saw as a refuge is a crime scene. The studio located at 401 W. Ontario St. was broken into during the overnight hours of Sunday, July 28.
"I came in and I noticed the cameras were gone," Fabre said. "I didn't think anything of it at first since cameras are in use all the time."
That initial curiosity quickly turned to fear when Fabre noticed more equipment missing.
"I look to my left and I'd seen all the cabinets opened and everything on the floor, and where we keep our lenses and all the lenses were taken, and at that point I’m like, 'I think I was just robbed,'" Fabre said.
Years of work and hundreds of thousands of dollars later, Fabre has had to close his doors and shut off his lights.
"They didn’t just steal from me, they stole from the community I serve," he said. "They stole from the family that I provide for."
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Fabre Studios became a space for creatives to come together and work with professional grade equipment at a fraction of the cost. Fabre dedicated his time to work with nonprofits to advance the mission, as well as young artists in the Chicago area.
While Fabre picks up the pieces, he said he hopes Chicago police will make an arrest and help return his equipment.
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As a first-time small business owner, he said he made the mistake of being underinsured and will now have to bear most of the financial cost. Still he vows to rebuild, not just for himself and his community, but for his first-born child on the way. Fabre said he wants to get business going again for his son.
"He can say despite the fact that his father went through something that was so challenging and devastating to him, he stood ground, he persevered and he didn’t quit," Fabre said.
Fabre believes thieves made their way into his studio by prying open a window facing the parking lot. They broke through drywall and eventually opened shutters before making off with the equipment.
While his community has had his back and helped him raise funds, he's a long way away from replacing everything he lost. However, he believes with hard work and help he can get his mission back on track.
"You can't let anything defeat you," Fabre said.
He hopes to reopen his studio sometime in the next week.
