Jewellery stolen in ‘ram-raid’ burglaries

Both incidents took place in Canberra within one day of each other, and police indicated they could be linked.

The first robbery occurred on Monday 30 March when a stolen vehicle crashed through the front doors of the Kippax Fair shopping centre. CCTV footage shows the thieves driving a short distance through the shopping complex before ramming the car into the front facade of a jewellery store and stealing a number of items. It was reported that the store – identified as Exquisite Jewellers – was also robbed in April and November 2014.

A similar incident occurred the following day at the Gungahlin Village shopping complex. The thieves again targeted a jewellery store – Diamond Ring Designs – and used a stolen vehicle, which had been driven through the complex, to gain entry to the premises. The car was later found in another suburb of Canberra with fire damage.

The two incidents, which ACT Policing referred to as “ram raids”, took place early in the morning before the jewellery stores had opened and two suspects were believed to have been involved in both burglaries.

A 20-year-old man was arrested on Thursday 9 April in relation to the Gungahlin robbery and was charged the day after with burglary, property damage, driving a stolen vehicle and arson. He has been remanded in custody until Friday 24 April.

At the time of publication, an ACT Policing spokesperson told Jeweller that investigations into both thefts were ongoing and that police were still looking into the second suspect and the possibility of a connection between the two cases.

Due to the fact that the matter was being handled in court, the spokesperson added that police were unable to disclose the value and type of jewellery that had been stolen.
 

Watch the CCTV Footage

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