$1 million worth of jewelry was stolen from a South Carolina business. It was caught on camera
Updated: 10:46 AM EDT Mar 14, 2023
COMING UP. $1.2 MILLION IN MERCHANDISE WAS STOLEN FROM A FAMILY JEWELRY STORE IN ABOUT 5 MINUTES LAST WEEK. ONE WORD, POLICE ARE STILL INVESTIGATING AFTER A BREAK IN AT QUEENS JEWELERS AT WESTGATE MALL. THE LATEST IN A STRING OF BURGLARIES THERE. OUR PEYTON FURTADO IS LEARNING MORE ABOUT THIS TODAY. SHE JOINS US LIVE NOW. PAYTON, WHAT DO WE KNOW SO FAR. WELL, SYDNEY STORE OWNERS TELL US THAT FOUR PEOPLE BROKE THEIR STORE’S GATE LAST MONDAY, BREAKING IN AND STEALING CARTIER AND ROLEX WATCHES. 35 DIAMOND NECKLACES. MORE THAN 50 DIAMOND BRACELETS AND MEN’S DIAMOND RINGS. MARCH 6TH, AN HOUR AND A HALF AFTER CLOSING AT AROUND 830, NIKKI, DONNY AND HER HUSBAND GOT A SECURITY ALERT ON THEIR PHONES. THEY WATCHED THEIR CAMERAS AS THREE PEOPLE BROKE INTO THEIR FAMILY, OWNED JEWELRY STORE INSIDE WESTGATE MALL WHILE ANOTHER ONE STOOD GUARD. WELL, IT WAS VERY PAINFUL. I WAS ON THE PHONE WITH 911 WHEN I COULD ACTUALLY SEE THEM GETTING AWAY WITH ALL THIS STUFF. NIKKI AND HER FAMILY HAVE OWNED QUEENS JEWELERS AT WESTGATE MALL FOR MORE THAN A DECADE, WORKING MORE THAN 60 HOURS A WEEK TO KEEP IT GOING. AND IN LESS THAN 10 MINUTES, SHE SAYS, $1.2 MILLION IN DIAMOND JEWELRY AND WATCHES WERE GONE. SHE SAYS THAT’S MORE THAN TEN YEARS OF WORK. JUST DISAPPEARED. IT IS SOMETHING THAT I CAN NEVER FORGET, EVER, EVER, EVER. I MEAN, IT HAUNTS ME EVERY SINGLE DAY, EVERY SINGLE HOUR. ACCORDING TO POLICE, THIS IS NOT THE FIRST TIME THIS HAS HAPPENED. LESS THAN A MONTH INTO THE YEAR, THERE HAVE ALREADY BEEN FIVE BREAK INS AND BURGLARIES AT WESTGATE MALL IN SPARTANBURG AND TEN SINCE 2020. HAD THEY CIRCULATED A MEMO OR LET US KNOW, WE WOULD HAVE ACTUALLY KNOWN WHAT WAS GOING ON HERE. BUT WE HAD NO CLUE THAT THIS WAS GOING ON. BUT INSTEAD, SHE SAYS SHE HASN’T HEARD ANYTHING FROM THE MALL, EVEN WHEN SHE’S BROUGHT UP MULTIPLE SECURITY CONCERNS REGARDING MALL ENTRANCES. THE MALL SECURED D NEEDS TO TAKE THIS VERY, VERY SERIOUSLY. WE HAVE WENT BACK AND FORTH. I HAVE SPOKEN TO THE ASSISTANT MALL MANAGER AND THE MALL SECURITY, BUT THEY ARE THEY ARE NOT EVEN READY TO COMMUNICATE WITH ME. WE REACHED OUT TO THE MALL ABOUT THIS, BUT HAVEN’T HEARD ANYTHING BACK. AS OF THE TIME THIS IS AIRING. ACCORDING TO THE FAMILY QUEENS JEWELERS, INSURANCE WILL ONLY COVER. AROUND $225,000 OF THE ABOUT $1.2 MILLION LOSS. LEAVING THEM HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS IN DEBT. HEARTBROKEN, THEIR HARD WORK WAS TAKEN IN MINUTES. THEY’RE ASKING THE COMMUNITY FOR HELP IDENTIFYING THESE BURGLARS AND ARE EVEN WILLING TO OFFER A REWARD. SOMEBODY OUT THERE KNOWS ABOUT THIS. THEY HAVE TO COME OUT. THEY HAVE TO HELP US. BECAUSE IF THEY KEEP DOING THIS TO SMALL BUSINESSES, HOW CAN ANYONE SURVIVE. AND IF YOU KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THIS BREAK IN OR ANY OTHER WESTGATE MALL BREAK INS, PLEASE CALL THE POLICE. WE HAVE REACHED OUT TO WESTGATE MALL ABOUT WITH SEVERAL OTHER QUESTIONS. THEY’VE RESPONDED. THEY ONLY KNOW ABOUT TWO INCIDENTS IN THE LAST TWO MONTHS. THEY’VE CALLED THE POLICE ABOUT THESE INCIDENTS. AND THOSE INCIDENTS, THEY SAY ALL THE DOORS WERE LOCKED IN THE MALL. LIVE IN SPARTANBURG ON P
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$1 million worth of jewelry was stolen from a South Carolina business. It was caught on camera
Updated: 10:46 AM EDT Mar 14, 2023
A family business in Spartanburg, South Carolina, says thieves stole more than $1 million worth of jewelry from their store, and it was caught on camera. The owner of Queens Jewelers in Westgate Mall said the store was robbed on March 6, about an hour and a half after closing. The owner said he got an alert on his phone, and when he checked his Nest camera on his phone, he saw three people stealing jewelry from display cases.The Spartanburg Police Department said officers were called to the scene but were not able to find any suspects. Video below: Surveillance video provided by Queens Jewelers of the robberyThe owner told officers that the merchandise that was taken included gold chains, Rolex watches, rings and bracelets.The owner sent the video to sister station WYFF and said in an email they “all are shattered.””We are small family and this was only source of income,” the email said. “It’s my family Loss. Please help me.”
A family business in Spartanburg, South Carolina, says thieves stole more than $1 million worth of jewelry from their store, and it was caught on camera.
The owner of Queens Jewelers in Westgate Mall said the store was robbed on March 6, about an hour and a half after closing.
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The owner said he got an alert on his phone, and when he checked his Nest camera on his phone, he saw three people stealing jewelry from display cases.
The Spartanburg Police Department said officers were called to the scene but were not able to find any suspects.
Video below: Surveillance video provided by Queens Jewelers of the robbery
The owner told officers that the merchandise that was taken included gold chains, Rolex watches, rings and bracelets.
The owner sent the video to sister station WYFF and said in an email they “all are shattered.”
“We are small family and this was only source of income,” the email said. “It’s my family Loss. Please help me.”
