$6M in Jewelry Allegedly Stolen Blocks From Times Square Ball Drop
The alleged robbery took place near New Year's Eve celebrations,
— -- Three suspects were caught on surveillance video using a pry-bar and hammer to break into a jewelry wholesaler blocks from where about a million revelers were ringing in the New Year at New York City’s Times Square, and allegedly stealing roughly $6 million in products.
The purported heist took place on New Year's Eve at the West 36th Street offices of Gregg Ruth, described on the company’s website as “a designer and manufacturer of fine jewelry.” The business is known for high-profile collections featuring rare yellow and pink diamonds.
The three suspects, one of whom looked directly into the surveillance camera during the heist, removed about $6 million worth of jewelry from two safes, police said.
The suspects then fled through the stairwell of the midtown Manhattan high-rise that was blocks from the nearly 7,000 police officers who were stationed in and around Times Square for New Year’s Eve festivities.
Police said there were no injuries in the alleged robbery.
ABC News' contributor Brad Garrett, a former FBI agent, said some clues could point to the alleged theft as an inside job.
"There are some pieces of inside information as to how this place operated and what its security apparatus was, both outside and inside," he said.
Garrett also said the excitement of nearby New Year's Eve celebrations could have contributed to the suspects' timing of the heist.
"The utter distraction of what's going on a number of blocks away at Times Square also, I think in their mind, probably gave them some sort of cover," Garrett said.
New York Police Department officials are asking for the public’s help in identifying the suspects, described as three males.
Anyone with information is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or visit www.nypdcrimestoppers.com.