MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (WSMV)—Murfreesboro police officers are searching for a man caught on video breaking into a bowling alley.

Police said the suspect punched a hole in the roof and jumped over a rope to get into the business. Loyal patrons of the bowling alley said they couldn’t believe what they were hearing.

The robbery occurred at the Lanes Trains and Automobiles entertainment center and the bowling alley on Butler Drive. Customers said they were not only shocked by the surveillance video, but days later they could still see the hole used to break in and steal hundreds of dollars.

Surveillance video showed a man walking through an empty bowling alley in Murfreesboro. Bowling alley cameras caught him breaking into the building at 3 a.m., but what surprised patrons like Sam Powers is how the man entered.

Powers said his jaw dropped when he heard the man cut a hole in the roof to get inside.

“Come on, that’s a movie, I’ve seen it in movies,” Powers said.

Murfreesboro police said after the man cut a hole in the roof of the bowling alley, he used a rope to rappel down.

“I grew up coming here, bowling, when I was in high school,” Powers recounted. “I was on the bowling team and I’ve never heard of anything like that happening here, especially knowing how long it’s been here.”

Detectives said that after walking, the man broke into an ATM and a gaming card loading machine, making out with $1,500.

Two days later, a woman at the bowling alley said she couldn’t believe what had happened.

“What went through their minds to even say, ‘I’m going to put a hole in the roof,’” he said.

A handful of loyal customers said they were sad to hear this happened to such a good business.

“Honestly, I hate it, just because it’s a family business,” one customer explained. “We bring our kids here all the time, so it really broke my heart too for the staff I met here.”

As detectives worked to locate the man caught on video, Powers said he hoped the robbery would prompt some changes to the business’s security.

“Hopefully, they’ll get better security and hopefully they’ll be able to secure that ATM,” Powers said.

Murfreesboro Police continue to search for the suspect and believe he is 6 feet tall and weighs approximately 170 pounds. The images show him wearing a green camouflage balaclava, a black jacket and blue jeans.

Anyone with information about this crime is asked to contact Murfreesboro police at 629-201-5638.

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