The May 22 smash-and-grab at Princess Bride jewelry store in Huntington Beach’s Bella Terra mall is just the latest among a slew of store robberies plaguing Orange County businesses over the past year, with rates “way off the charts” according to an industry expert.
There, four thieves in ski masks assaulted jewelry store staff, destroying several display cases in a foiled robbery attempt in which employees successfully fought them off.
As they began smashing displays with hammers, two employees rushed at them and exchanged blows, with one intruder getting knocked to the ground, as shown in the store’s video. Another staff member charged at one of the thieves with a chair, hitting him with it as the assailants attempted to flee.
Later, the store reported that three rings went missing after the robbery.
“We are so grateful that the robbery was minimized and that our team is okay,” the store posted on Instagram.
This is just the latest in a series of robberies in Orange County in the last few months.
Last week, a TJ Maxx clothing store in Mission Viejo on Santa Margarita Parkway was also targeted by robbers.
A May 19 video posted on social media shows a group of several young women rushing out of the store, each with several large bags in hand.
The social media post’s author said the store is often the target of petty thievery, and that management is not allowed to prevent theft from occurring.
“If we want to continue to have nice stores to shop in, then these criminals must be stopped,” the post’s author wrote.
The store’s manager declined to comment and a spokesperson did not return a request for comment by press time.
Kay Jewelers at the Westminster Mall was also robbed last month when two unidentified men stole over $200,000 worth of jewelry. The thieves in this instance also used sledgehammers to smash the glass display cases before grabbing the jewelry inside and fleeing in a rented Sedan, according to the Westminster Police Department.
The suspects remain at large.
“I think if [jewelry] store owners want to stay in business and reduce the chance of robbery, they should bulk up on metal gates,” the store manager of ProFix Jewelry and Watch Repairs, who wished to remain anonymous, told The Epoch Times.
The ProFix manager also recommends jewelry store owners and operators invest in buzzers and limit customers to two or three at a time, decreasing the liability of more customers potentially being harmed in a robbery.
According to ProFix’s manager, his Laguna Hills store has been robbed twice since 2019, with the last break-in last month when two men and a woman broke in around 3:00 a.m., charging straight for the store’s safe. Police were on the scene within four minutes.
“Obviously [the thieves] didn’t have a lot of time … but the female was selecting the jewelry from the showcase. Picking and choosing what to take,” the store manager said.
Suspects from last month’s break-in at the store have still not been apprehended, with the store sustaining “well over” $20,000 in stolen merchandise and property damage.
After their first break-in in 2019, ProFix had invested in buzzers and metal cage-like doors that lock quickly, allowing for quick open-and-close while serving as a barrier against escape in case of another attempted robbery.
Kay Jewelers in the Brea Mall was robbed a day after ProFix last month. This time, two robbers again used hammers to smash in glass displays, stealing an unknown number of items and fleeing before police could apprehend them.
“[Thieves] are becoming more aggressive … the cost of doing business has increased, especially when the crime rate has increased,” the ProFix manager said.
The manager, who has worked in the industry for over 30 years, said jewelry store insurance premiums have skyrocketed as crime goes up and that insurance “rarely” covers the full amount of losses a store incurs after a robbery.
“Most jewelry stores already have a high amount of [insurance] coverage, but [it] will never be enough to cover everything because the cost makes it too expensive to run a business,” the manager said.
Kennedy said this number is high even for California’s size and population.
“[This rate] is way off the charts of being unusual. It scares people in the industry,” he said.
