Police are hoping surveillance video will help them catch a jewelry thief who stole a bracelet worth nearly $85,000 from a Southern California mall.
The thief was caught on camera snatching the jewelry and fleeing on foot from Romano’s Jewelers in the Glendale Galleria about 6:40 p.m. Thursday, police said.
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The thief first asked to look at a bracelet, one the shop doesn’t typically carry -- a white gold Rolex bracelet with eight carats in diamonds, priced at about $85,000.
The man asked to see the bracelet, and store employees took it out of the case to show it to him.
The owner of Romano’s Jewelers said normal protocol is to ask for a customer’s drivers license before letting anyone handle a piece of jewelry.
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“He didn’t look like he would do something because he was wearing expensive jewelry, too,” assistant manager Nadjiba Djellali said.
The man can be seen leaning over the counter for only a few seconds to look at the bracelet before he takes off running.
Djellali chased him through the mall and into the parking lot, where she called police.
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The store only had the bracelet in stock for two days as a featured holiday item, store manager Anthony Hurtado told NBC4.
Hurtado believes the man knew what he was doing when he came into the store.
“He didn’t come walking around the store,” he said. “He went straight to this case, straight to that bracelet and just ran off with it.”
The man was described as African-American, 20 to 25 years old, 5 feet 7 inches tall, and about 130 to 160 pounds. He was seen wearing a black beanie, dark shirt and black leather jacket.
Anyone with information is asked to call Glendale police detectives at 818-548-3127.
