Police announced they're searching for thieves who stole nearly $20 million in jewelry and cash by tunneling into a downtown Los Angeles jewelry store on April 13.
The owners of Love Jewels said they’re out millions following the break-in after the thieves stole watches, pendants, gold chains, and other merchandise. The LA Times called it a 'cinema-style heist' and noted the culprits tunneled through multiple reinforced walls to break in,
The FBI has joined the investigation as officers review security camera footage that shows the suspects entering the store from a large hole they drilled from the property next door, a small movie theater.
The owner of the store suspects that the thieves took weeks to tunnel in. “They went through some really thick old walls. They went into one small room and then through a second wall,” LAPD Capt. Raul Jovel told the LA Times. “This was serious digging.”
Love Jewels employees discovered that two large safes had been broken into, containing all the merchandise they had in the store. The jewelry store is a favorite among rappers, artists and more.
"On social media, the store boasts images of personal necklace tributes, gold Rolex watch straps, diamond-encrusted miniature AK-47s, M-4 trinkets and enormous racks of gold chains," the Times noted.