Thieves strip ‘dream’ business of nearly everything on Detroit’s east side

DETROIT – A dream come true turned into a nightmare for two social workers on Detroit’s east side.

The two invested hundreds of thousands of dollars into buying a property in hopes of starting a 24/7 daycare and a senior care facility. Their dream might take longer than they anticipated, because thieves decided to strip the place.

Latoya Brown and Wanda Canty could only cry when they looked at what was left of their newly purchased 28,000 square foot building on East Grand Boulevard.

Thieves made their way inside the building multiple times Friday. The thieves cut the power and took the heating system out of the building.

The thieves also managed to get away with the piping in every room and caused a massive amount of damage -- setting the remodeling process back and raising costs.

Despite being hurt -- potentially by members of the same community they were hoping to help -- they plan to still move forward with the building.

Detroit police are looking for a silver Ford F-150 in connection to the vandalism that has taken place at the building. In the meantime, the two have decided to take turns watching the building to make sure it doesn’t happen again.

The current plan is for the facility to open before the end of 2020.

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About the Authors:

Victor Williams joined Local 4 News in October of 2019 after working for WOIO in Cleveland, OH, WLOX News in Biloxi, MS, and WBBJ in Jackson, TN. Victor developed a love for journalism after realizing he was a great speaker and writer at an early age.

Dane is a producer and media enthusiast. He previously worked freelance video production and writing jobs in Michigan, Georgia and Massachusetts. Dane graduated from the Specs Howard School of Media Arts.