On 1/29/24, WCCB Charlotte reported that an attempted smash and grab occurred at a jewelry store in Pineville, NC. A subject reportedly tried to smash a jewelry store’s display case. Limited information was released. If you have any information regarding this incident, please contact the Jewelers’ Security Alliance at jsa2@jewelerssecurity.org or 212-687-0328.
GRAB AND RUN – TACOMA, WA
On 1/28/2024. at approximately 12:40 p.m., a grab and run occurred at a retail jewelry store. A male subject entered the location and expressed interest in men�s diamond earrings. While having a client profile setup, the subject expressed interest in the earrings. Once the earrings were removed from the showcase and placed in front of the subject, he grabbed the earrings off of the counter and ran from the location.
Subject Description: Black male, early to mid-20’s, approximately 5’10”, thin build, black hair, wearing a blue/green raincoat with white sleeves, grey pants, and black shoes. If you have any information regarding this subject, please contact the Jewelers’ Security Alliance at jsa2@jewelerssecurity.org or 212-687-0328.
GRAB AND RUN – RALEIGH, NC
On 1/28/24, just before 5 p.m., a male subject entered a jewelry store and looked at men’s gold chains. He tried on two different chains and left the store to look at another jewelry store. He returned to the first jewelry store at 5:33 p.m., and again went to look at the same two gold chains. The sales associate had both chains out for the subject to try on and compare. At 5:44 p.m., he ran with both chains. The subject was described as a 40 to 50 year old Black male.
He has tattoos on his neck, hands, and fingers. He also has a large, bold swirl tattoo on the right side of his neck and his eyes appeared jaundiced. The subject was wearing a blue vest and a blue hat. He also wore a black hoodie and pants, and a black mask pulled down covering his chin. He had square black framed glasses with a thick rim up top, but rimless on the bottom. He also wore white shoes. If you have any information regarding this subject, please contact the Jewelers� Security Alliance at jsa2@jewelerssecurity.org or 212-687-0328.
GRAB AND RUN – CHARLESTON, NC
On 1/26/2024, at approximately 11:15 a.m., a jewelry store experienced a grab and run theft after a lone male entered the store and walked directly to where the gold chains were previously displayed. The team member approached and asked what the individual was shopping for, to which he replied “solid gold chains.” He was taken over to where the gold plated chains were as a result of the team member feeling a bit uneasy with the male.
He asked to see a gold chain and was told it was gold plated and not solid gold as he had requested. He then asked to see a gold and diamond bracelet, which he was also told has also been gold plated. He chose a third item, and again was told it was plated as well and not solid gold like he was looking for. The subject then asked to see and try on the plated necklace just to see if �it was a style he liked�. He was allowed to try on the one piece. He then asked if he could try on the bracelet as well to see if it matched. When this was denied due to policy, he replied “Then I am out of here.” He ran from the store with the gold chain around his neck and without making payment.
Subject Description: The subject is described as a Black male, approximately 5’10” tall with a slim build, weighing approximately 160 lbs. He wore black faded denim jeans and a red and white. He was clean shaven and wore a white ball cap. He’s approximately 30 to 40 years of age with no visible or obvious tattoos. If you have any information regarding this subject, please contact the Jewelers’ Security Alliance at jsa2@jewelerssecurity.org or 212-687-0328.
GRAB AND RUN – LAS VEGAS, NV
On 01/22/24, at 11:39 a.m. a grab and run theft occurred at a retail jewelry store. A male subject under the pretense of shopping, requested to see rope chain. During the presentation, the subject grabbed the piece from the team members hands and fled the location with the stolen chain.
Subject Description: Black male, 6′” thin build, wearing tan vest, black baseball hat, and sandals. If you have any information regarding this subject, please contact the Jewelers’ Security Alliance at jsa2@jewelerssecurity.org or 212-687-0328.
GRAB AND RUN – FRESNO, CA
On 1/7/24, at 5:30 p.m., a male subject approached a jewelry kiosk inside of a mall and expressed interest in diamond rings. When the team member removed the ring to show to the subject, the subject grabbed the ring and ran from the location. Mall Security and Fresno Police Department were contacted. No injuries reported.
Subject Description: Black male, late-40’s to early-50’s, approximately 5’8″ – 5’10”, medium build, tattoo under each eye. If you have any information regarding this subject, please contact the Jewelers’ Security Alliance at jsa2@jewelerssecurity.org or 212-687-0328.
Why a jury will rehear Wilmington hammer attack, jewelry heist case after mistrial.
Wilmington, DE- January 8, 2024 – A local court has set a new trial date for the man accused of assaulting a Wilmington jewelry store owner with a hammer during a September 2022 robbery.
Later this month, prosecutors will put Calvin Ushery on trial again for the violent heist of the now-defunct Solid Gold Jewelers store on Ninth Street, according to recent court filings.
Court documents also shed some light on why a jury was unconvinced by prosecutors� first effort to convict Ushery of a raft of changes including robbery and assault tied to the heist.
After two days of trial in September, a mistrial was declared after jurors were deadlocked in deciding the case. Since then, Ushery�s defense attorney has cited delays in the process in unsuccessfully seeking to have the case dismissed.
The robbery and investigation
Surveillance video of the attack and robbery circulated shortly after the incident but provided few clues as to the identity of the robber.
The video begins with a man grabbing the owner of the store, who was 68 years old at the time. The video shows the man striking the store owner with a pistol, leaving him on the ground. The robber then places jewelry in a bag, taking several minutes to gather items.
Periodically, the robber returned to the owner of the store and struck him again, including blows with a hammer, prosecutors said. After several minutes of gathering the store�s inventory, the robber appears to use a cloth to wipe surfaces in the store. The intruder wore sunglasses and carried a black backpack.
The jewelry store owner spent four days in the intensive care unit following the attack.
A week after the attack, local pawn shops contacted detectives and reported that a man had come through trying to sell a large amount of jewelry. Surveillance footage depicted a man investigators said matched the robber.
Later, officers spotted a man matching that description walking on the street and called for backup, prosecutors said. They arrived as he sought to sell jewelry to a woman at a local gas station and Ushery was arrested.
A �hot potato�
At the first trial, a member of the family that owned the store told the jury that jewelry found in Ushery�s possession was among some stolen from the store.
This appears to be the closest connection prosecutors could make tying Ushery to the robbery. They also had video appearing to show Ushery entering the pawn shops and attempting to sell jewelry the day he was arrested.
His family member testified in the defense case, telling the jury that Ushery had won the jewelry in a game of dice ? testimony prosecutors argued was not credible.
Beyond that, prosecutors compared the “stocky” build and “unique,” wobbly gait of the assailant to Ushery�s appearance when he entered the pawn shops. Matthew Keating, Ushery�s defense attorney, showed surveillance video from the store to show a stocky officer wobbling when he walked.
Keating told the jury prosecutors were using inferences to show similarities between the attacker and Ushery but didn�t prove they were the same person.
Prosecutors said cellphone location data backed up their theory, while Keating argued the location data showed his client had left the area before the robbery had concluded.
IN DEPTH: �Just inhumane�: Family of man attacked in Wilmington robbery speaks out
Deputy Attorney General Samuel Kenney said a bicycle found in Ushery�s residence after his arrest was the “coup de gr�ce.”
Detectives had used surveillance footage from nearby cameras to evidence that the attacker rode to and from the robbery on a dark-colored bicycle, which prosecutors said matched one found in Ushery�s residence following his arrest.
However, Keating pointed out dissimilarities between the bicycle recovered from Ushery�s residence and the one depicted in surveillance footage. He also emphasized how no fingerprints or DNA were found tying Ushery to the scene.
Prosecutors noted the assailant wiping down parts of the jewelry store as he plundered it. They emphasized that the robber was careful. Keating noted there were portions of the scene touched barehanded, not wiped down and still rendered no connection to his client.
He also noted that Ushery hadn�t shown such care when in possession of the stolen jewelry, entering both pawn shops without any sort of effort to disguise himself. He pointed out that Ushery was caught with only a portion of the stolen jewelry, as well.
“Where are the other 1,250 pieces of jewelry?” Keating asked the jury. “The state�s entire prosecution has been essentially hot potato. Mr. Ushery was caught with the potato and that�s it; that�s the case.”
Click here to view news clip.
TheoOriginal article written by Xerxes Wilson and can be found here.
Arrest Related to Homicide of a Jeweler
Wheat Ridge, CO – January 8, 2024 – Investigators have reason to believe that a man suspected of burglarizing a jewelry store, a month after its owner Peter Arguello was shot and killed, could be tied to the homicide.
On November 29, 2023, Peter Arguello, the owner of a jewelry store in Wheat Ridge, CO was shot and killed. The killer fled the scene. A stolen red Chevrolet Silverado was found burned two days after the homicide.
While investigating Peter Arguello’s murder, investigators found three flex cuffs on the floor in front of the store’s safe, where silver and coins had been removed. According to an affidavit, surveillance footage showed a male suspect tried to use the cuffs on Arguello, but Arguello resisted, and the suspect shot him.
The Jefferson County Regional Crime Lab conducted a DNA test on the flex cuffs, and on December 8, 2023, found the DNA on the cuffs matched the DNA profile for 40-year-old Charles Robinson Shay.
On December 26, 2023, at approximately 5:00 a.m., a month after the homicide, a subject broke into the jewelry and antique store formerly owned by Peter Arguello. The subject set off the store’s alarms and did not steal anything. Authorities also discovered a stolen vehicle was parked nearby and was linked to Shay.
Following his arrest, Shay admitted to burglarizing the store on December 26th. According to the affidavit, Shay reportedly told investigators, he “saw it as a crime of opportunity, knowing that the business was boarded up and not occupied.”
When a detective informed Shay that his DNA had been found on the flex cuffs from the scene of the homicide, police indicate that Shay stopped talking.
Shay had previously been convicted of motor vehicle theft, drug possession, vehicular eluding, identity theft and theft. He is currently being held at Jefferson County Jail on suspicion of aggravated motor vehicle theft and second-degree burglary.
Charles Robinson Ray, 40. Image Credit: Wheat Ridge Police Department
The deceased jeweler, Peter Arguello, is pictured below.
Watch videos below of those who knew Peter Arguello.
SNEAK THEFT – SUNBURY, OH
On 12/23/23, at 7:08 p.m. a jewelry store was the victim of a sneak theft. According to management, after counts were completed on December 26th, they identified that a chain was missing from counts. An audit was conducted and they identified that the 14K YG 24″ Figaro Chain was missing. A review of video identified a subject entering the store on December 23rd and they were greeted by a sales representative. The subject stated that he wanted to look at rings and was shown several rings with no issues and decided on one that he liked and stated that it was cheaper than he thought it would be, so he asked to look at chains for his son.
The sales representative then guided the subject over to the chains and presented the subject with several options. A total of three chains were presented and during the conversation with the subject about prices one chain was never retrieved. As the sales representative went to check on the prices, the subject who had the chain under his left forearm, placed the chain into his left coat pocket. The subject then stated that he had money in his car and would be back. The subject left and never returned. The Delaware County Sheriff’s Office was notified, and a report was filed.
Subject Description: Black Male, early 50’s, 5’10 – 6′ tall, weighing between 180 to 200 lbs. The subject was last seen wearing glasses, an Adidas baseball cap, a surgical mask, blue Jeans, and a puffy blue coat. If you have any formation regarding this subject, please contact the Jewelers’ Security Alliance at jsa2@jewelerssecurity.org or 212-687-0328.
GRAB AND RUN – SANDY, UT
On 12/17/23, at 6:30 p.m., a grab and run theft occurred at a jewelry store. Two male subjects requested to see gold chains and pendants. During the presentation, the subjects grabbed both pieces from the team members hands and fled the location with the stolen chains and pendants. There were no reports of injury.
Subject Descriptions:
Suspect 1: Black male, early 20’s about 5’9″, slim build. Wearing a black hoodie, dark pants.
Suspect 2: Black male, early 20’s about 5’7″, slim build. Wearing dark clothing.
If you have any information regarding these subjects, please contact the Jewelers’ Security Alliance at jsa2@jewelerssecurity.org or 212-687-0328.