Watch Discussion: Jewelry Store Robbery San Ramon, CA

patrick_y · 2023-03-20T03:55:46Z

Explore the rising trend of luxury watch store robberies, like the San Ramon Rolex and Cartier heist. Collectors discuss security, insurance, and the mainstream appeal of watches.

patrick_y

WPS member · Horological Meandering forum

44 replies5856 views0 photos

Patrick_y's original post brings a critical discussion to the forefront: the increasing brazenness of luxury watch and jewelry store robberies. His account of a daylight armed robbery in an upscale, family-friendly California shopping complex, featuring Rolex and Cartier, serves as a stark reminder for collectors to reassess personal safety and the broader implications for the watch community. This incident, captured on video by numerous bystanders, highlights a concerning trend that impacts both retailers and enthusiasts.

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This jeweler which carries a significant Rolex and Cartier selection, was hit by several robbers (many of them armed with guns) on Friday 17-Mar-2023. Fortunately, despite having many children in the shopping complex, there were no significant injuries. Unfortunately, the thieves stole a significant amount of merchandise and destroyed much of the store in their rush to get to the merchandise.

The shopping complex, designed by famous architect Renzo Piano, is a newly built complex in San Ramon, California an upscale town nearby San Francisco that normally has a reputation for being quite safe. The complex is built as an open air community center with a large park area in the center of the complex to be shared by families with children. During the time of the robbery, which happened during broad daylight, there were many patrons and children in the vicinity. The thieves fled in two vehicles - the distance from the store to the parking area is approximately 150 feet or 50 meters away from the parking lot.

There is a significant amount of video coverage from patrons who took photos and videos from their mobile phones. Some of these videos can be seen below.

https://www.cbsnews.com/sanfrancisco/news/caught-on-video-brazen-armed-jewelry-store-heist-leaves-san-ramon-residents-shaken/

https://www.ktvu.com/news/san-ramon-police-investigate-smash-and-grab-robbery-at-jewelry-store

It's very sad. One resident said to a journalist on camera "where are the parents?" implying that the parents of the thieves didn't do a good job raising the thieves. I found that statement to be extremely assumptive on so many levels - it's quite possible - perhaps even likely that some of these thieves grew up without parents in an orphanage or the foster-care system. I found this perspective unusually perplexing and likely naive. This naïveté towards crime surrounds us - so we need to be extra cautious - as there are probably many things we don't understand and thus we should all be extra careful!

I wish all of our members to be safe and to make an assessment of your habits regarding safety and see if there are any glaring deficits that need to be improved. And I wish my best to the employees of the jeweler and of the mall - I hope that they recover from this very scary and surreal episode.

Key Points from the Discussion

The mainstream appeal of luxury watches, now frequently referenced in popular culture, has made them highly liquid assets, increasing their attractiveness to thieves. Additionally, the perception that such crimes are victimless due to insurance coverage often overlooks high deductibles and the significant emotional and financial toll on victims and businesses.
Some luxury watch retailers are displaying watches with non-functioning movements, indicated by a seconds hand stuck at a specific position, to deter theft. This raises questions about whether this practice extends to other brands like Cartier and the effectiveness of such measures against armed robbery.
The rise in such incidents is viewed by some as a primarily political problem, reflecting a breakdown in judicial systems both in the US and Europe, which are perceived as ineffective in deterring these 'acts of terror' against communities.
Concerns about safety have led some collectors to wear less conspicuous timepieces, like Swatches, when traveling or attending luxury watch events, even in traditionally safe European cities, illustrating the widespread impact of these security issues.
Despite enhanced security measures, such as armed guards and bulletproof armor at high-end department stores, the sheer scale and organization of some robbery crews (e.g., 9+ individuals involved in the San Ramon incident) can overwhelm existing defenses, turning affluent shopping areas into 'pleasant war zones.'

The Discussion

j.jota

Mar 20, 2023

Unfortunately, high end watches, particularly Rolex are an extremely valuable (and relatively liquid) commodity

it doesn't surprise me that stores get hit quite often... the Ben Bridge Jewelers in my local mall (which is the local Rolex AD) always has one or more armed guards at the entry and they've still gotten robbed in daylight more than once in the last 12 months. Banks located near freeway onramps actually get robbed quite frequently... employees are instructed to hand over the money and let law enforcement deal with the issue.

patrick_y

Mar 20, 2023

Agreed...

Cars are universally appreciated, even the lowest common denominator appreciates a nice car. But watches - used to be something only appreciated by a few. Nowadays, they've gone totally mainstream - musicians even rap about watches in their lyrics. This mainstream appeal has made watches even more liquid than ever! Furthermore, thieves know that employees are told to just walk away or hand over the money - the thieves assume everything is covered by insurance (in reality it's not as there's usua

AuHavrePro

Mar 20, 2023

Another well-off neighbor....

just got burglarized two days ago in Marina Del Rey, I'm doing two twelve hour shifts at his home as a result.... The next door neighbor told me 'this never happens here'........

ArmisT

Mar 20, 2023

Now that is highly concerning.☹️

Select neighborhoods used to be exceptionally safe. Unless you tell me he was profiled and followed home (which is just as scary), it’s just as bad to think that homes are under surveillance to figure out which and best time to strike.

AuHavrePro

Mar 20, 2023

No question about it.

He was actually on the east coast for business, so they knew nobody was home........

FabR

Mar 20, 2023

Indeed, sadly we've been hearing more and more of these stories recently, throughout this country and beyond -- please keep safe and thank-you for your service as well! ;-)

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