Burglars strike metro Atlanta film warehouses

More than three dozen burglaries have occurred at metro Atlanta companies that rent cameras, lighting and other equipment to Hollywood productions, a key part of Georgia's economy.

Driving the news: The crimes have frustrated filmmakers and left law enforcement puzzled. Now, Atlanta City Councilmember Michael Julian Bond wants metro Atlanta law enforcement to create a task force to catch the bandits.

Details: Since 2021, more than 40 burglaries at 30 different production equipment warehouses and buildings across metro Atlanta have resulted in more than $2 million in losses, Bond says.

In some of the crimes, the burglars went straight for rooms where top-dollar equipment is stored, according to a spreadsheet listing the burglaries attached to the legislation.

• Similar crew sizes — often four men — were used in the burglaries, and in some of the crimes, suspects used a crowbar to break into the business.
• In one instance, detectives reviewing surveillance footage “noted the distinctive limp of the heavyset perp and identified him as ‘Bobby.’”

Dissatisfied with the response from law enforcement, industry members asked Bond to come up with a solution, the councilman tells Axios. The full Council must approve the legislation at next week’s Monday meeting.