Millions of dollars worth of gems and gems were stolen from Brinks’ armored truck near Los Angeles last week, according to security companies.
The group’s event director, Brandy Swanson, said the goods were loaded onto Brinks trucks from an event hosted by the International Gem and Jewelery Show in San Mateo near San Francisco on July 10. She said the truck was on its way to another exhibition 370 miles away at the Pasadena Convention Center in Pasadena.
However, under undisclosed circumstances, the goods were taken out of a truck near Los Angeles early Monday, said Brinks spokesman Dana Callahan.
The value of stolen merchandise, including some gold and diamond necklaces, was not immediately apparent. Also, it was unknown how many sheets were taken.
One of the jewelers who demanded anonymity about security concerns because they deal with expensive jewelry estimated that the total amount of stolen items was between $ 20 million and $ 50 million. Callahan said it was less than $ 10 million.
“According to the information we provided to us before the customer shipped the item, the total amount of the missing item is less than $ 10 million,” Brink’s said in a statement. “We work with law enforcement agencies to fully refund the value of stolen assets to our customers, subject to the terms of the contract.”
Jewelers have stated that Brinks is not transparent to jewelry owners and many basic questions about loss remain unanswered.
Neither the authorities nor Brinks have disclosed details of what happened, such as where the theft occurred or whether someone was injured.
A spokesman for the Federal Bureau of Investigation said authorities were working with local governments but could not provide further information. In that statement, Brinks called the episode a “loss case.”
