'American Idol' Champ Phillip Phillips' Family Pawn Shop Burglarized

10:12 PM PDT 6/12/2012 by Michele Amabile Angermiller

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Crooks broke into the season 11 winner's family business, stealing handguns and the entire cash register.

Frank Micelotta/FOX/PictureGroup

While American Idol winner Phillip Phillips was celebrating his release from the hospital following painful kidney surgery, crooks were vandalizing and robbing his family's pawn shop in Albany, Ga.

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Albany Sporting Goods and Pawn, located in the 1700 block of East Oglethorpe in Albany, was robbed sometime between Monday night and Tuesday morning, according to local authorites.

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The thieves utilized a backhoe to bust through the rear entrance of the shop. Approximately $4,000 worth of merchandise was taken from the store, including handguns, flat-screen television sets, necklaces, rings, antique pieces and coins, and the entire cash register, which at the time had about $110 in the drawer, according to a report from TMZ.

The backhoe belonged to Albany Water Gas and Light and was reportedly hotwired and stolen from a nearby job site. The phone lines and power were cut off in advance of the robbery, authorities said.

Although 25 police cars reported to the crime scene, no arrests have been made.

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Reports indicate that the Phillips family is in California helping the 21-year-old singer recuperate and was not present at the time of the theft.

The shop was heavily featured this season -- particularly during Phillips' poignant return home in May. The business is currently up for sale through Willcox Realty. Phillip's father, Donald, is said to have considered selling it for $200,000 prior to his son's winning season. It went on the market ten days before the Idol finale.

Phillips made no mention of this on Twitter this afternoon, although he did tweet that he was "Ready to be able to pick the guitar back up and REALLY play.....its been too long!"

Phillips is expected to be ready for the American Idol Live tour July 6 in Detroit.