A quartet of would-be thieves is on the lam after a failed heist at a Miami jewelry store, authorities said. The gang reportedly burrowed their way into the Fresh Dental Smiles and then smashed through its walls to breach the neighboring Ashley II Jewelry store on Northwest 7th Street in the wee hours of Monday morning.
According to a report by WSVN, the miscreants dug a hole in the roof of the dental office next door, then punctured two walls to access the jewelry store's safe. Despite their elaborate scheme, the burglars failed to crack the safe and fled through the roof, leaving behind a shop in disarray and a severely damaged security system.
"Today, at 12 a.m., the alarm was activated," Odette Cortina, the owner of Ashley II Jewelry, told WSVN. "When my husband tried to check the cameras, it doesn’t work. We keep all of our jewelry in the safe when we go home in the afternoon."
As seen in surveillance footage obtained by NBC Miami, the thieves wore black and concealed their faces while rummaging through drawers and tampering with what appeared to be the security system before hastily retreating empty-handed. Detectives are still combing through the evidence left at the scene of the botched robbery.
According to WSVN, the store owner suspects the thieves had visited the store as customers before the attempted robbery to familiarize themselves with the layout. "What I think is those guys know, know what they are doing," Cortina insisted.
No arrests have been made regarding the incident, as the Miami Police continue their investigation. The public has been urged to come forward with any information that could lead to the capture of the suspects.
