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In the spirit of flipping through the Sunday comics, we bring you the rare Jack Spade "Breaking and Entering" Comic Book.
On March 5, 2008, the Jack Spade store in Soho at 56 Greene Street had a curious break-in. Of course it was all caught on tape, and this comic book was compiled from the events of that night. It is a typical dumb criminal story, of Jay Leno's favorite type, and it all begins with a simple log hurled through the door glass.
· March 5, 2008: A 21-year old man breaks through the glass of Jack Spade's front door with a log, then enters the store. After attempting to break into the cash register using some sort of rocket prop, the burglar began piling up on sunglasses and twill messenger bags. He successfully bags the bags and exits back through the broken door window.
Only a few minutes later, the thief returns to the Jack Spade store to pick up his log. While he is distracted by making the log easier to carry, the cops pull up outside on Greene Street.
The cops then enter and search the empty store, taking note of any pillaged displays. Eventually, they think to check the store's bathroom, where the thief has been hiding out all along. After ordering him out, guns drawn, the wannabe metrosexual is arrested and shipped off to jail.
· April 13, 2008. 1:42am: Guess who's back! The log-loving thief had made bail for his first arrest for burglarizing Jack Spade, and now has returned to finish the job. The log comes back through the window, and he enters to steal only three things this time: sunglasses, a tote bag and the rocket prop.
All in all, he got away with $1,215-worth of merchandise, only to forget that the police totally still had his address on file from the first arrest. So a few days later on April 17, the cops sauntered over to the stylish thief's Upper West Side place and swept him back into jail, where "manbag" takes on a whole meaning.
The drawings in this comic book, done by Jason Polan, are black and white (maybe even a Sharpie?) and the book is printed in Philadelphia. It's a humble tribute to the naivete of the young thief and his calculated choice of boutique and product. Leave it to Jack Spade to hip-ify this moment of retail weakness.
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