New York – The Jewelers’ Security Alliance has issued two alerts ahead of the long holiday weekend, urging jewelers to be cautious when travelling with merchandise and reminding them to respond to any alarms in their stores.
In the first alert, issued on Monday, the organisation said eight crimes had been committed against jewellers and travelling jewellery salespeople between October 16 and November 16.
These attacks took place from coast to coast.
According to the JSA, these incidents include a jeweler who was followed and robbed by a suspect on a scooter in Queens, New York on October 16; a travelling salesman who had his trunk lock cut and a large amount of merchandise stolen while in the parking lot of a jewellery store in Providence, Rhode Island on November 1; and two robberies in which suspects crashed into jewelers’ cars in California.
The first occurred on 24 October, when four gang members deliberately crashed into a Hong Kong salesman’s car on the I-10 in Los Angeles.
The JSA said the suspects swarmed the damaged car and stole merchandise while the salesman was on his knees with his arms raised.
The second happened on 16 November on the I-405 in Huntington Beach, south of Los Angeles. The suspects hit two cars on the freeway before robbing a jewellery store clerk and taking off in another vehicle, a white Ford Explorer, the JSA said.
Crimes against jewellers and others in the jewellery industry reached record levels in 2022, with significant increases in both the number of incidents and dollar losses.
This included an increase in what the JSA classifies as off-premises crime, defined as an attack that occurs away from the victim’s place of business.
The organisation recorded 65 cases of off-premises attacks in 2022, almost double the number recorded in 2021.
On Monday, the JSA reminded jewellers of some of the tips it has shared in the past to reduce risk and loss when travelling with jewellery.
These include jewellers: taking evasive action, whether walking or driving, when leaving a sales call; not leaving merchandise in an unattended vehicle; considering themselves a crime target if they suddenly get a flat tyre or their car overheats; and shipping merchandise after trade shows, if possible.
The JSA also noted that jewellers need to be sceptical of any strangers who approach them while carrying merchandise.
According to the JSA, on 17 October, a woman approached a jeweller who was filling up his car at a gas station in Miami and asked for his help. The suspects opened his trunk and stole jewellery while he “helped” the woman.
