Search on for robbers behind million-dollar jewelry store heist caught on camera

KCRA, SACRAMENTO COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE, CNN

By Jonathan Ayestas

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    FLORIN, California (KCRA) — A search is on for a group of people who robbed $1 million worth of items from a jewelry store, the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office said Wednesday.

Deputies around 1:15 p.m. on July 6 went to a jewelry store near Stockton Boulevard and Orange Avenue after getting a report of a robbery, the sheriff’s office said. But by the time they got there, the store was already cleared of a substantial amount of jewelry.

“No regard for public safety, no regard for human life, but they’re not stupid…this looked like it required some sort of planning,” said Amar Gandhi with the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office.

Surveillance videos shared by the sheriff’s office show the group entering the store, wearing face coverings, hoodies and gloves and holding bags. Two of them could be seen wielding what appear to be hammers.

The group can be seen smashing display cases and looting the store before they made their way out of the store. Video began before 1:14 p.m., and the group can be seen driving away seconds before it turned 1:16 p.m.

The two getaway vehicles appeared to be a white Audi SUV and a white Mazda sedan.

It is unknown how long ago the robbery started before deputies got the call to respond, but the sheriff’s office said the store was full of employees and customers at the time. It appears that the employees and customers might have evacuated the store when the smash-and-grab began.

The sheriff’s office said eight people arrived at the store in two separate vehicles. One person pepper-sprayed a security guard while entering the store, while a ninth person stood guard at the door.

The sheriff’s office estimates the robbers took about $1 million worth of store products before fleeing.

After the robbery, the sheriff’s office said its detectives identified the primary suspect as 30-year-old Leo Smith from Oakland. They tracked him down to Hayward and took him into custody.

Because they found a loaded firearm in his vehicle, the sheriff’s office said it charged him for being a felon in possession of a firearm.

The sheriff’s office is still looking for the seven other people who arrived in the two getaway cars and the ninth person who stood guard during the robbery.

“Maybe some of them are from the Bay Area, maybe some of them are local…we want to get the public’s help in identifying these folks,” said Amar Gandhi with the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office.

Anyone with information is asked to call the sheriff’s office at 916-874-5115. They can also call Sacramento Valley Crime Stoppers at 916-443-4357. Tips that lead to an arrest may lead to a cash reward of up to $1,000, the sheriff’s office said.

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