Watch: Driver plows through Brea tobacco shop, narrowly missing a customer and employee

The driver of a BMW plowed through a tobacco shop in Brea on Thursday afternoon, knocking down display shelves and narrowly missing a customer and a shop employee.

A customer leaning on the counter and an employee behind the register were hit by debris when the black BMW 440i crashed through the front door, according to surveillance camera video obtained by OnSceneTV. No one appeared to be directly hit by the car.

When the car came to a stop, the female driver can be seen rolling down her window and peering out at the carnage around the vehicle, according to the video. She then appears to try to put the vehicle in reverse.

Police told OnSceneTV the driver was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence and the building was deemed unsafe by a city building inspector. The Brea Police Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment Friday morning.

Store employee Ansh Sedh said he believes the driver was trying to pull into a parking spot when she drove into the tobacco shop. He said the car pressed a display into his leg.

“I tried to step back as much as possible but there’s only two or three feet of space. She pushed everything onto me,� Sedh said outside the shop shortly after the crash. “I didn’t realize I was hurt until the adrenaline went down.�

Sedh explained that a friend who was in the shop was taken to the hospital with a minor injury to his leg.

Store owner Kevin Salma was stunned by how quickly it happened.

“It’s crazy. A car slammed into the shop. Everything happened in a quick second,� Salma told OnSceneTV. “You see this in the movies only.�

Salma said a customer in the shop was hurt, but he didn’t know if the driver was injured in the crash.