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A midnight break-in at Papa John’s on Jackson Street has Tullahoma police investigating how the culprit was able to get a key to open the store safe.

Police know a key was used to enter the store safe because the key was still in the lock when lawmen arrived at the scene of the crime the next morning. Gone was over $600 in cash that had been logged into the safe the night before. And, police found that the surveillance cameras that normally monitor the store were not on.

A search of the area revealed the burglar or burglars made entry through the drive through window using a short crowbar. Officers were told that the window had been broken before, therefore employees were instructed to put a piece of metal to wedge the window shut when they closed for the night. However, the night before the break-in, the employee did not place the wedge in the window. Management was able to determine that fact because the security cameras were working at the time the last employee left the store just before midnight. They do not believe that employee was involved in the subsequent crime.

Police found that power was cut to the store minutes later at the stroke of midnight, killing the security cameras. The power was cut by an emergency shutoff outside the building.

Tullahoma police are continuing their investigation into the nocturnal caper.