What to Know
- A pair of thieves in their 60s have stolen more than $140,000 worth of goods from stores in Manhattan and Brooklyn
- They've hit shops in midtown, the Upper East Side, Williamsburg, and Midwood; One of the stores was inside the heavily fortified Trump Tower
- In their most recent theft, they stole a $95,000 diamond necklace from a store while a clerk was just feet away
The phrase “you get better with age” appears to apply to a pair of brazen thieves who police said have hit several high-end shops in New York City for more than $140,000 worth of goods.
Authorities said they are looking for a man and a woman in their 60s who have looted six jewelry and clothing stores in midtown, the Upper East Side and Brooklyn since last February.
Authorities said they began their crime spree at Gucci inside heavily surveilled Trump Tower, with the woman stealing a purse valued at $1,250.
Since then, police said the duo allegedly stole jewelry valued in the tens of thousands of dollars, a purse from a woman’s cart in a supermarket and a religious artifact valued at $1,500 from a Jewish bookstore in Midwood, Brooklyn.
But their most recent haul, on Jan. 18, was the most lucrative. That’s when Bobby Ashiq of Lloyd’s International Gallery said the female thief came in and scoped the high-end jeweler out before stealing a $95,000 diamond necklace from under his nose.
“I said ‘Where are you from?’” he said. “(She replied) ‘I’m from Moscow,’ so I said, ‘OK, no problem. We ship worldwide.’”
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The woman left after telling him she was just looking. But Ashiq said five minutes later she came back in with her co-conspirator and began asking about a malachite pedestal.
“When she came back I said, ‘Maybe they are serious.”
Ashiq said while he showed the man the stone piece, the woman backed into the jewelry counter. Surveillance footage obtained exclusively by News 4 then shows the woman open the case up, take the necklace -- the most valuable piece in the gallery -- and slip it into a scarf.
Ashiq said the woman then walked back to her partner and the two motion to leave. Ashiq, a good salesman, offers his card in case they wanted to buy an item -- and the two take off.
Ashiq said that it wasn’t until later he realized that the necklace was gone.
“$95,000. 20-carat diamonds. 18-karat gold. It was the most expensive thing we had,” Ashiq said. “I was stunned.”
Anyone with information about the thieves is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS.
