LAKEPORT ? Almost $4,000 of tattoo equipment and ink was stolen from Armor Tattoo Tuesday night, according to Lakeport Police and the shop”s owner.
Lakeport resident Jason Hodges owns Armor Tattoo on South Main Street in Lakeport, which also has a retail outlet at the skateboard park at Lakeside Lanes. Hodges said he found a small window broken and tattoo equipment missing when he arrived at his South Main Street shop just before 10 a.m. to prepare for the day.
“Somebody”s out there doing tattoos right now. This is a small enough town that I”m hoping someone in my community can keep their ear out and not be afraid to come forth,” Hodges said.
The stolen items include six customized tattoo guns, three power supplies, a Canon EOS camera, an MP3 player and portable hard drive, approximately $400 of tattoo needles and six full bottles of tattoo ink, according to Hodges.
“They knew exactly what they wanted. My laptop was there, and it was not stolen. They went specifically after tattoo stuff. There were two brand-new air brushes and all kinds of stuff they didn”t take,” Hodges said.
Officer Jim Bell of the Lakeport Police Department took the report Wednesday morning. He said the burglary happened sometime Tuesday night.
“Whoever it was, was pretty small,” Bell said. He said the thief or thieves got in and out through a small window in the back of the shop.
A metal security mesh that had covered the window was pulled back. Sharp edges of broken glass protruded from the metal window frame, which had been removed from the opening.
Bell said he took fingerprints and other evidence at the shop that is being processed, but he doesn”t know yet whose fingerprints were found. He said he advised Hodges to get the word out about the burglary in order to generate leads. Hodges said he is offering a $500 reward to anyone with information that leads to the recovery of his equipment. He can be contacted at 263-7183.
“No questions asked ? if I get my stuff back they get paid,” Hodges said.
Hodges said Armor Tattoo still offers the body art, thanks to colleagues who volunteered tattoo equipment. Hodges said the tattoo equipment taken belonged to himself and two other tattoo artists at his shop. The shop also offers paintings, skateboard art and piercing. He said between 30 and 50 customers visit the shop every month.
The hand-made, custom tattoo machines cost between $350 and $400, and are not sold to the general public, according to Hodges.
“The tattoo machine is the primary tool we use to make our living,” Hodges said.
Hodges said when he started tattooing professionally in Hayward eight years ago, thieves broke into his shop three times.
“There are no guarantees in this business. Anything can happen, and it does. But I didn”t think it would up here,” Hodges said.
Contact Tiffany Revelle at trevelle@record-bee.com.
