Brookhaven police are investigating a break-in at Dude’s Biscuits, and Chief Bobby Bell said the crime could be connected to a rash of recent vehicle burglaries.

Police responded to the restaurant at 924 Hwy. 51 North at 3:18 a.m. Monday. Bell said when officers arrived they noticed that someone had broken in through the drive-thru window at the establishment.

The break-in wasn’t noticed until the business opened Monday, so the incident happened sometime between closing time Friday evening and opening Monday morning.

Bell said the owners reported $20 missing from a donations bucket inside the restaurant. Investigation of the incident is underway.

Bell said the break-in could be connected to several vehicle burglaries, at least seven, reported Monday morning on North Jackson Street, Melanie Lane and Palmer Street.

Reports about the burglaries came from vehicle owners, and officers patrolling the area discovered more burglaries after seeing vehicle doors ajar. All the vehicles involved in the Monday morning burglaries were unlocked with no damage to the vehicles themselves. Things reported missing range from $50 to electronics like iPads and iPods.

“Basically, we’re trying to see what happened because we did have officers in the area,” Bell said. “We’re going to patrol more often and start using spotlights as we patrol.”

Bell urges residents of Brookhaven to make sure their vehicle doors are locked as they continue to investigate the crimes.