Crime Watch

Saturday's Claremont Courier had an interesting "Police Blotter" bit about a robbery that took place on Friday, January 18th:

Armed robbers made off with approximately $650,000 worth of jewelry and personal goods from a Hong Kong man and his wife who were in town visiting a friend. The incident occurred outside of a residence on the 300 block of Miramar Avenue at approximately 10 p.m.

When the victim and his wife arrived at their friend’s home, 4 men wearing ski masks and dark clothing approached their vehicle. The suspects were all carrying handguns.

According to the Courier, the robbers stole about 700 pieces of jewelry. Police apparently believe the robbers had followed the victims, who were here for some sort of business trip. Cash, a laptop and other items were also taken.

$650,000. Wow! You sort of get the impression that there must be more to the story. The Daily Bulletin's Wes Wood fleshed out some of the details in an article today:

When asked if the Jan. 18 incident was related to reported incidents of South American crime rings who target traveling jewelry sellers in Los Angeles, police said they didn't know.

"If I was going to give a guess, it would be pure speculation on my part," [CPD Lt. Paul] Davenport said.

In June, a group of eight to 10 Asian males armed with handguns robbed a 25-year-old Claremont woman and a 31-year-old Corona man, according to a Claremont police news release.

The man and woman were jewelers who had just returned from a Las Vegas trade show, but were not carrying jewelry during the robbery. The pair had their luggage taken and their vehicle vandalized and ransacked, according to the news release.

Davenport said there was no connection he knew of between the cases, which are both unsolved.