BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — Over at Brooks Brothers Interiors — just a few weeks ago, this local business was vandalized. Wires were cut from the electric vehicle charging stations, costing thousands in damage — all because of what's possibly inside. Now, the community is stepping up with a fundraiser to help them recover.
Brooks Brothers Interiors, which offers interior design, has been a staple in Bakersfield since 1964. Tamara Montana runs the business, and in 2021, had electric vehicle chargers installed. But back on June 16th, she tells me she discovered the EV charger wires had been cut — resulting in several thousand dollars of damage. She realized what happened when she checked the security footage.
"I looked at the footage and they had taken a saw. They could have gotten a couple hundred dollars maybe for the copper. They could’ve asked me for it — they didn’t have to do such terrible damage that would really affect everything." Montana said.
It wasn’t confirmed the EV wires were cut specifically for copper theft, but they do typically contain that metal. Copper theft continues to be a growing problem in Kern County. On June 18th, detectives with KCSO’s Rural Crime Investigations Unit discovered a copper wire theft causing approximately $30,000 in damage in the Tejon area.
The Kern County Sheriff's Office tells me that from January to May 2025, there were 120 copper wire thefts reported, totaling about $1.25 million in loss — adding that rising copper value has contributed to the surge.
But whatever the reason was for cutting the cables, the impact was costly for Montana.
"It’s actually more than twenty thousand, but we think we can salvage the infrastructure parts of it. So, really to replace all the connectors and stuff, we were guesstimating it was about twenty thousand — but it’s probably more." Montana said.
Now, this is where the community element comes in. Local pastor Angelo Friazer from RiverLakes Community Church says he started the Victory Over Vandalism fundraiser to help Tamara recover and restore what was lost — adding that small businesses are the backbone of our community.
"We need to stand together not only to restore what has been taken, but also to pray for those doing such acts — that they too would find redemption as well." Pastor Friazer said.
Tamara adds that she’s hoping the community comes together to support her during this time of need.
The fundraiser will be on July 2nd, here at Brooks Brothers Interiors, starting at 11 a.m.
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