Thieves ram stolen vehicle into Stockton jewelry store

4 min read

The owners of Kim Hoan Jewelry store at Stockton’s El Dorado Street woke up Tuesday morning to broken glass, tire marks and a boarded window. That was the aftermath of a crash-and-grab burglary that happened overnight. A surveillance video captured the moment when a group of thieves rammed a stolen vehicle into the storefront before making off with thousands worth of money in merchandise and leaving the car behind. The store’s owner didn’t want to be identified out of safety concerns and said he saw multiple people on camera running through and taking items from his store after ramming through the gates. “I saw on the cameras here — I have two in the front; they’re about seven, eight or nine people.” He said he’s seen reports of other businesses in surrounding cities experiencing such break-ins, but never expected something like this would happen to him. “Not a good feeling because the thing they left here is complete damage,” the owner said. “The door, the showcase, completely damaged.” For now, Kim Hoan Jewelry store is closed until the owner is able to fix all the damage. Earlier this month, a second jewelry store roughly a mile away on the same street was targeted in a similar burglary. David Scott, a spokesperson for the Stockton Police Department, said detectives are investigating both incidents and working to determine whether the two are related. But such incidents are raising concerns among the community. “We are experiencing business burglaries on the rise,” Scott said. “Detectives are putting plans together where we can prevent these types of measures.”Police are warning business owners to be on alert and suggest having alarms, registering those alarms with the city to make response time faster and utilizing security cameras to aid in their investigations . Kim Hoan Jewelry owner said he was grateful no one was inside his store when the burglary happened, but in a worst-case scenario, police say remaining calm and simply complying with demands is likely the safest route for businesses and employees. “Calling 911 right away, being a good witness, not intervening, keeping them safe in the property,” Scott said. “Life is more important than property.”

The owners of Kim Hoan Jewelry store at Stockton’s El Dorado Street woke up Tuesday morning to broken glass, tire marks and a boarded window.

That was the aftermath of a crash-and-grab burglary that happened overnight.

A surveillance video captured the moment when a group of thieves rammed a stolen vehicle into the storefront before making off with thousands worth of money in merchandise and leaving the car behind.

The store’s owner didn’t want to be identified out of safety concerns and said he saw multiple people on camera running through and taking items from his store after ramming through the gates.

“I saw on the cameras here — I have two in the front; they’re about seven, eight or nine people.”

He said he’s seen reports of other businesses in surrounding cities experiencing such break-ins, but never expected something like this would happen to him.

“Not a good feeling because the thing they left here is complete damage,” the owner said. “The door, the showcase, completely damaged.”

For now, Kim Hoan Jewelry store is closed until the owner is able to fix all the damage.

Earlier this month, a second jewelry store roughly a mile away on the same street was targeted in a similar burglary.

David Scott, a spokesperson for the Stockton Police Department, said detectives are investigating both incidents and working to determine whether the two are related.

But such incidents are raising concerns among the community.

“We are experiencing business burglaries on the rise,” Scott said. “Detectives are putting plans together where we can prevent these types of measures.”

Police are warning business owners to be on alert and suggest having alarms, registering those alarms with the city to make response times faster and utilizing security cameras to aid in their investigations.

Kim Hoan Jewelry owner said he was grateful no one was inside his store when the burglary happened, but in a worst-case scenario, police say remaining calm and simply complying with demands is likely the safest route for businesses and employees.

“Calling 911 right away, being a good witness, not intervening, keeping them safe in the property,” Scott said. “Life is more important than property.”

You May Also Like