FBI helps investigate million dollar jewelry truck robbery 1:04
(CNN) ––
Gems and jewelry valued at millions of dollars were stolen from an armored truck that was parked at a stop near Los Angeles on Monday, July 11, authorities reported.
Now several agencies are investigating the facts.
Millions of dollars worth of jewelry was stolen from an armored truck near Los Angeles, authorities said.
The million-dollar robbery occurred between 2:00 a.m. and 2:30 a.m. at a Flying J stop and gas station near Lebec, California, about 80 miles north of Los Angeles, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said. Angels in a statement.
A trailer operated by Brinks was transporting the expensive pieces from a jewelry show in San Mateo to another show in Pasadena, according to Arnold Duke, director of the International Gem and Jewelry Show.
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"I've done this professionally for 45 years and we've never had anything remotely like this," Duke told CNN.
At least 16 merchants were affected by the theft of 20 large trunks weighing about 100 pounds each, Duke said.
The trunks held gemstones, Rolex watches and thousands of loose diamonds, some priced at close to $500,000 each wholesale.
Some custom and one-of-a-kind finished parts were also stolen from the truck, Duke added.
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"The sheer amount of gems and jewelry wouldn't fit in one car," Duke noted.
"It's an impressive amount of jewelry and leaving it unattended is inconceivable."
Losses from the millionaire jewelry theft
Some of the smaller merchants lost about $700,000 in merchandise, while the figure for the largest businesses runs as high as $12 million, according to Duke calculations.
However, Brinks noted that the insurance data does not indicate such a high loss.
"Based on information provided to us by customers prior to shipping their items, the total value of the missing items is less than $10 million. We are working with law enforcement and will fully reimburse our customers for the value of their assets." stolen, in accordance with the terms of our contract," Brinks told CNN in a statement.
Duke said many jewelers don't insure the full value of what they ship, as the cost of insurance can be extremely high, and rely on the safety precautions Brinks trucks and their drivers take.
One of the stolen pieces of jewelry.
"A lot of dealers know quite a few drivers by their first names," Duke said.
"Speechless"
A shopkeeper told CNN that he was robbed of 30 years of his life's work with the shoplifting.
He did not share his identity or the name of his business for fear of suffering something similar.
He expressed that he was "emotional" and "speechless".
She also mentioned that she wants "Brink's to answer her" after losing some collectible jewelry and one-of-a-kind pieces in the robbery.
The FBI assists the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department in the criminal investigation into the robbery.
As of Tuesday, no suspects have been identified.
Duke said it shared video recordings of people who attended the jewelry shows with federal authorities in hopes of finding a clue to suspicious behavior.
And he added that Rolex watches and many of the diamonds have serial numbers that can make them easier to trace if found.
JewelryLos AngelesTheft