JSA warns Fla. jewelers of quickie burglaries

The Jewelers' Security Alliance (JSA) is ringing the alarm for jewelers in Florida, urging the retailers to take precautions and lock up all goods at night to avoid becoming victims of the three-minute burglaries that have been happening throughout the state this fall.

Three-minute burglaries are so named because thieves typically smash through glass windows and doors, enter a store, grab the goods and flee the scene within several minutes. The most recent incident occurred in Mariana, Fla., on Oct. 23, when four masked thieves smashed in a glass front door of a retail jewelry store in a strip center and proceeded to break through 12 showcases, the JSA says. Witnesses to the incident, which happened around 5 o'clock in the morning, reportedly saw four masked people dressed in black fleeing in two white BMWs. The loss occurred within one hour of a similar loss in nearby Dothan, Ala., the JSA says.

Another recent incident happened on Oct. 14, when three male suspects armed with rifles and shotguns smashed through the glass front door and the display cases of a chain retail store in Gainesville, Fla., then fled the scene in a Mercedes. Police arrested one male suspect believed to be a lookout.

Since the JSA first issued a three-minute burglary alert for the Sunshine State in September, burglars have hit jewelry stores in Altamonte Springs, Daytona Beach, Orlando and Palm Coast, among others.

Since three-minutes burglars make no effort to enter safes, and instead simply grab merchandise left out overnight, they are undeterred by alarm systems, the JSA says. Therefore, JSA officials recommend that jewelers store their jewelry and watch merchandise away at night in adequate safes.
Source: nationaljewelernetwork