Surveillance video captured a burglar smashing his way into a beloved Los Angeles toy store and escaping with thousands of dollars worth of merchandise

On Feb. 21, the masked suspect broke into Kip’s Toyland at the Original Farmer’s Market around 4:22 a.m.

The burglar shattered a large display window, entered the store and headed directly to the shelves stocked with Lego sets.

The suspect quickly cleared the display shelves and escaped with the store’s most expensive Lego sets, valued at thousands of dollars.

The masked suspect broke into Kip's Toyland at the Original Farmer's Market and escaped with thousands of dollars worth of expensive Lego toy sets on Feb. 21, 2026. (Kip's Toyland)

The masked suspect broke into Kip’s Toyland at the Original Farmer’s Market and escaped with thousands of dollars worth of expensive Lego toy sets on Feb. 21, 2026. (Kip’s Toyland)

The masked suspect smashed a display window Kip's Toyland at the Original Farmer's Market and escaped with thousands of dollars worth of expensive Lego toy sets on Feb. 21, 2026. (Kip's Toyland)

The masked suspect smashed a display window Kip’s Toyland at the Original Farmer’s Market and escaped with thousands of dollars worth of expensive Lego toy sets on Feb. 21, 2026. (Kip’s Toyland)

The masked suspect broke into Kip's Toyland at the Original Farmer's Market and escaped with thousands of dollars worth of expensive Lego toy sets on Feb. 21, 2026. (Kip's Toyland)

The masked suspect broke into Kip’s Toyland at the Original Farmer’s Market and escaped with thousands of dollars worth of expensive Lego toy sets on Feb. 21, 2026. (Kip’s Toyland)

The masked suspect smashed a display window Kip's Toyland at the Original Farmer's Market and escaped with thousands of dollars worth of expensive Lego toy sets on Feb. 21, 2026. (Kip's Toyland)

The masked suspect smashed a display window Kip’s Toyland at the Original Farmer’s Market and escaped with thousands of dollars worth of expensive Lego toy sets on Feb. 21, 2026. (Kip’s Toyland)

Andrei Amodia, a store employee, was the first to discover the mess left behind by the burglar when he arrived at work on Saturday morning around 10 a.m.

“I was in shock,” he told KTLA’s Jillian Smukler.

“As a small business, this is a big hit for us,” said Jay Ortiz, the store manager. “I don’t know how we’ll recover from something like this or even want to push forward. Like, do we continue to carry Legos? Will we be continually targeted? Those are the questions we’ll have to ask [along with] what merchandise do we want to carry.”

The shop’s owner, Lilly Kipper, said she wasn’t notified of the break-in by any security members. After calling the Los Angeles Police Department, by 7 p.m. on Saturday night, Kipper said no officers had yet arrived to take a police report.

The family-owned shop was opened in 1945 by Lilly’s grandfather, Irvin “Kip” Kipper, who was a WWII veteran and prisoner of war. The shop has remained a beloved staple of the Farmer’s Market for over 80 years and is now the oldest toy store in Los Angeles.

After her grandfather passed away recently, the shop was passed down to Lilly and her father.

Store workers believe they were targeted by the suspect, who appeared to be experienced and moved quickly to steal the most expensive merchandise sold at the shop.

LAPD told KTLA that officers will eventually head to the store to take a police report, but no exact time was given.

The owners hope the suspect is caught soon before they target another small business.

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