# $65 M Haul In London Robbery



## Inspector (Nov 13, 2006)

*LONDON, England (CNN)* -- Two men are being sought for questioning in the brazen daylight robbery of a jewelry store last week, in which some $65 million in merchandise was stolen, authorities said Tuesday.







Security camera footage shows images of the men wanted by police.










Detectives released surveillance camera photos of the two, in addition to images of some of the rings, bracelets, necklaces and watches taken from Graff Jewellers on central London's New Bond Street. A total of 43 items were taken, with a value of about £40 million, or about $65 million, Scotland Yard said.
The heist occurred Thursday, when two men walked into the jewelry store at about 4:40 p.m. and threatened employees with handguns. As the robbers were leaving the store, they brought a female worker outside with them before leaving in a blue BMW, Scotland Yard said. A shot was fired outside the store, but no one was injured.
The men abandoned the BMW nearby, firing a second shot into the ground, Scotland Yard said. Police believe they switched to a silver Mercedes, then later to a black vehicle, possibly a Ford or Volkswagen.
"This was a well-planned robbery with a number of vehicles used to help the robbers escape," Detective Chief Inspector Pam Mace said in the statement. "These men are extremely dangerous and fired at least two shots in busy London streets as they made their getaway.
"Someone knows who these men are," she said. "They would undoubtedly have spoken about (the robbery) before or boasted about it afterwards. I would urge anyone who recognizes them, knows the whereabouts of the jewelry or has any other information to contact us."
The images show the two men dressed in suits and ties. One man is white, about 30, police said. The second is a black man believed to be in his 30s with short hair. Both men are thought to have spoken with London accents, Scotland Yard said.
The robbery is the latest in a spate of daytime thefts at jewelry stores and designer shops in London's exclusive shopping areas of Bond Street, which includes New Bond Street.
Groups of men or teenagers typically stage "smash and grab" robberies, in which they break the windows and steal anything they can get their hands on before speeding away in waiting cars or motorbikes. 
A CNN camera crew filming in March on Oxford Street, near Bond Street, caught a group of thieves speeding away on motorbikes from a jewelry store they had just robbed.
The thieves choose to strike during the day when a store's security system is typically disarmed, even though the store and sidewalk may be crowded with people.
http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/europe/08/11/london.heist/


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## Goose (Dec 1, 2004)

...but guns are illegal! How could this happen!

The outrage!!!! :roll:


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## MetrowestPD (Oct 21, 2008)

Go big or Go home


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## kwflatbed (Dec 29, 2004)

*London police make arrest in jewelry heist*










LONDON -- Police said Wednesday they have arrested a suspect in connection with a daring daytime heist that netted $65 million worth of jewelry from a prominent London diamond merchant last week. 
Police said the 50-year-old man, who was subsequently released on bail, is not one of two dapper dressers captured in security camera footage released by Scotland Yard on Tuesday. The footage showed two men in smart suits being let into Graff Diamonds flagship store, where police say they produced guns, briefly took a member of staff hostage and escaped in a series of getaway cars across central London. 
Police believe at least two others helped the pair escape. No one was hurt in the robbery, one of the biggest in British history. 
British authorities seldom release suspects' names until they are charged. 
Amateur video shot outside the store appeared to capture the men's escape and images of screaming shoppers as a warning shot is fired into the ground. 
Police said the men made off with dozens of high-end rings, bracelets, necklaces and watches with a retail value of 40 million pounds, or $65 million. A full list of the 43 pilfered items was made public Wednesday: Among the jewels was a flowing flower necklace made from 272 separate diamonds and a lavish pair of triple-hoop earrings bearing no fewer than 216 gemstones. 
Although the man was arrested Monday, a Scotland Yard spokeswoman said police kept news of his capture secret until now for "operational reasons." She spoke on condition of anonymity in keeping with department policy. Police declined to say what amount they set as bail. 
The same store lost jewelry worth 23 million pounds in 2003 when it was robbed by Nebojsa Denic, a Kosovar Serb and a member of the notorious gang of Balkan robbers known as "the Pink Panthers." Denic was caught and sentenced to 15 years in prison. 
Britain's Press Association news agency quoted an unnamed police source as saying that the Pink Panthers were unlikely to have been behind the latest raid. 
Asked about the matter by the Associated Press, a Scotland Yard spokeswoman said only that police were keeping an open mind.

London police make arrest in jewelry heist


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## JMB1977 (Nov 24, 2007)

MetrowestPD said:


> Go big or Go home


+1


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## tsunami (Aug 12, 2009)

65 Million dollars....damn...thats BIIIIG


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