Four people arrested for jewelry theft in Aspen

Editor’s note: The names of suspects arrested/charged will not be released until a conviction or criminal sanction is reached, unless the individuals hold positions of public trust or pose an imminent danger of harm to the public (e.g., active shooter) or there is an exceptional circumstance. A plea agreement is made.

The Aspen Police Department arrested four people Tuesday for allegedly shoplifting Avi & Co. jewelry late Sunday night and early Monday morning.

The men, who allegedly tunneled through two walls of adjacent businesses to enter the jewelry store, were arrested by Aspen Police in Vail, according to an Aspen Police Department news release. They were taken to the Pitkin County Jail.

Two of the arrested men, a 34-year-old from Peru and a 41-year-old from Buenos Aires, were charged with second-degree burglary. The other two men arrested, aged 35 and 43, both from Chile, were charged with conspiracy to commit theft.

“Greetings to our friends. “They did some brilliant police work, honestly,” Aspen Deputy Police Chief Bill Linn said. “Some of the officers were very creative in figuring out what was going on.”

According to business employees, nothing of value was taken from the jewelry store or the two adjacent businesses where the thieves entered. The suspects were unable to successfully open the safe.

According to Wayan’s Owner Raphael Derly, the suspects did not have to break a door or window to enter the building complex in Hunter Plaza, where several businesses, including the jewelry store, are connected wall-to-wall.

Derly said they first entered the front door of Indonesian restaurant Wayan, which will have its grand opening in December. The restaurant, currently under construction, replaces the former Local Coffee.

Derly said he left the business Sunday evening, locking both doors at the front. One of the doors is opened with a password and the other with a key. Neither door was damaged when the thieves broke in.

Once inside, the suspects tunneled through the wall of the restaurant and the wall of the Forré Fine Arts gallery into the jewelry store’s back office, using an array of tools including saws, placement torches, crowbars, gas tanks and a ladder. to assist them with alleged thefts, among other items.

An Avi & Co. who chose to remain anonymous. The employee said they appeared to be after the contents of the jewelry store’s safe.

“I definitely think it has to do with jewelry and watches,” the employee said. “(It’s) weird that if they’re just trying to get something valuable, they don’t get anything else.”

According to the employee, some of the watches sold at the jewelry store are worth $400,000.

The employee said the suspects did not take any computers, art or alcohol from the other two businesses they had access to.

Some of the artworks at Forré are valued at over $1 million, said Forré Principal Larry White.

At 4pm on Sunday, the afternoon before the burglary, White said he felt uneasy about three men entering the gallery.

As he left the gallery that afternoon, he bumped into an Aspen police officer on the street and told him of his suspicions. The officer forwarded the information to the department, White said.

The jeweler employee said that according to the camera footage in the store, the suspects entered the workplace around 21.30 and came and went three different times throughout the night. The employee added that they turned off the alarm when they first entered.

According to the press release, officers arrived at the scene late Sunday evening after being notified of an alarm triggered at the jewelry store, but left the business after finding nothing.

“We have security and the door is locked, so it’s not possible for (police) to just enter the store,” the employee said.

The safe is not visible from outside the jeweler.

The employee said the suspects returned a few hours later to examine the store before leaving once again. He said they returned for the last time around 1:30 a.m.

“Then they came back and covered the cameras like they were spray painting the cameras,” the employee said.

White said the suspects also placed large white foam panels in front of the gallery windows to block most of the view from the outside.

Officers were once again called to a jewelry store alarm around 1:30 a.m., according to the press release.

Linn said when officers returned, they noticed an inconsistency in the space due to a staircase being moved inside the gallery.

“Honestly, responding to a burglar alarm is not uncommon,” Linn said. “But really realizing there’s more going on here than your average burglar alarm? On top of that, they were very sharp.”

According to the information obtained, the suspects fled when police officers entered the jewelry store. Officers then identified the suspects and their vehicles using modern police technology and video surveillance footage, according to the statement.

According to the release, they sent out a statewide notification of suspects approached by Vail police who were arrested by Aspen police in Vail before they were brought to the Pitkin County Jail.

While burglaries are rare in Aspen, Linn said high-end businesses may be at greater risk.

“In high-value businesses, I think (this) creates a sense that people can get a bigger score,” he said.

Linn said it’s important for businesses with high-value products to have a good video security system and an alarm system that notifies police when triggered.

A trial date for the men has not yet been scheduled.

“The City of Aspen emphasizes the fundamental principle that every person charged with a crime is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law beyond a reasonable doubt,” Linn said in the statement.

Skyler Stark-Ragsdale can be reached at 970-429-9152 or email her at [email protected].