(Image: Uncle Ike’s)

Despite a boom in cannabis revenue for many in the industry, Seattle’s Uncle Ike’s has had a rough go through the pandemic as the chain of pot shops saw its sales fail to keep up with competitors as its Capitol Hill and Central District stores were targeted with vandalism during equity and anti-police protests. Things didn’t get any better in a set of Tuesday, March 2nd incidents in which Ike’s management said a disgruntled employee did some $60,000 worth of damage to two of the chain’s shops and caused the loss of more than $75,000 in sales.

According to the SPD report on the incidents, police say Ike’s security video shows the suspect enter Ike’s flagship store at 23rd and Union just before 5 PM where he began laying waste to the retail space with a hammer, pushing down counters, breaking shelves. and damaging merchandise.

Police say the employee smashed the screens of computers and disabled them, and “swung the hammer at merchandise with no concern for customers inside” leaving broken glass all over the floor and causing around $50,000 in damage. “Employees evacuated customers through the back exit and secured themselves into the backroom,” SPD reports.

The attack was efficient, lasting one minute. “I’ll be back,” the employee said as he exited, according to witness statements.

Instead, police say the suspect traveled to White Center where he allegedly laid waste to the Uncle Ike’s shop there, assaulting another employee in the process.

Police say Ike’s management told them the employee worked out of the White Center location and was angry over being fired over alleged threats made after his hours were cut. “When someone messes with me, I take that seriously. I am so mad right now, so fucking mad at you I could drive into a pole. I could drive into a pole or I could hurt someone,” the employee allegedly told one manager.

Police reported that the suspect remained at large as of the early March incident. We’ll follow up to see if he’s been taken into custody since.

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