Suspects use sledgehammers in attempted jewelry store heist
By Anahita Jafary
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SAN JOAQUIN COUNTY, California (KCRA) — Red tape is blocking off the area where an attempted heist took place in broad daylight on Tuesday afternoon.
DeVons Jewelers in San Joaquin County’s Lincoln Village suffered thousands of dollars in damages after two suspects unsuccessfully smashed its glass display with sledgehammers.
“The sheriff’s office received a call of two subjects with sledgehammers who were in the process of smashing the outdoor display case that contained Rolex watches and trying to gain access to those items,” said Andres Lopez, a deputy with the San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office.
One witness caught it all on tape.
The video shows the criminals dressed in all black from head to toe while trying to break through the glass.
“The workers were actually able to gain access inside the display case and grab the Rolex watch and the items and away from there,” Lopez said. “So when the suspects saw that, that’s when they stopped smashing the windows and and fled in their vehicle.
Mark Sarale is the owner of Nekter juice bar, right next door.
“I was just kind of shocked. You know, it’s pretty brazen to do something like that at noon and it’s just really upsetting to put everybody in that kind of a jeopardy,” Sarale said.
Sarale shared what happened from his perspective.
“I was in the store, you know, working and one of the employees from, DeVons came around the back. She was pretty shaken. She told me that they were being robbed,” Sarale said.
While police were still being contacted, Sarale sprung into action.
“I looked outside, told everybody ‘Just stay inside’.I closed the door just so I could keep everybody safe and then the guys took off,” Sarale said.
The sheriff’s office said they are looking at video footage from flock safety cameras in the Lincoln center to help with the investigation.
“There’s license plate readers here. There’s super good, cameras all around. So, it doesn’t happen that often,” Sarale said.
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