Three masked men steal over US$430,000 in jewellery in two-minute Genting Highlands heist
Three masked men armed with axes and crowbars stole 81 pieces of jewellery worth an estimated RM1.747 million from a goldsmith at SkyAvenue in Genting Highlands on Monday. Police said the suspects escaped in a BMW before roadblocks were activated.
- Three masked men stole 81 pieces of jewellery weighing 2.5kg from a goldsmith at SkyAvenue.
- The suspects used an axe and claw hammer to break open display cases in about two minutes.
- Police launched roadblocks after identifying a BMW believed to have been used in the robbery.
PAHANG, MALAYSIA: Three masked men stole 81 pieces of jewellery worth an estimated RM1.747 million (about US$430,000) from a goldsmith at a shopping mall in Genting Highlands on Monday morning, escaping in a BMW before police roadblocks were activated.
The robbery took place at about 11.39am at the Chow Tai Fook outlet at SkyAvenue, where the suspects took five trays containing jewellery weighing 2.5kg in total.
Acting Pahang police chief Deputy Comm Datuk Azry Akmar Ayob said the suspects took only about two minutes to break open the shop's display cases and flee.
Suspects smash display cases
CCTV footage showed the three men entering the premises wearing caps, face masks and jackets.
They were armed with axes and crowbars, which they used to pry open and smash the display cases before fleeing at about 11.41am.
“Based on preliminary investigations, police have identified that the suspects arrived in a car to carry out the robbery,” Azry said.
“The suspects, wearing caps and face masks and armed with an axe and a claw hammer, took at least two minutes to carry out the robbery.
“All three were then detected heading down from Genting Highlands shortly after the robbery,” he said when contacted.
No customers or security guards inside
Two employees, a man and a woman, were inside the shop when the robbery occurred, while a third female employee was on a break, Azry said.
“No customers or security guards were present, and no injuries were reported,” he said.
The shop had no security guard on duty at the time of the incident.
Suspects fled in BMW
Police identified the vehicle used by the suspects after reviewing CCTV footage from SkyAvenue.
Azry said the trio had driven to the hilltop resort in a BMW registered to a man in Ampang, Selangor.
The vehicle was later detected travelling down from Genting Highlands after the robbery.
Police launch roadblocks
Police immediately launched Ops Tutup following the incident, with roadblocks set up at Checkpoint 2 in Genting Highlands and along the route towards Batang Kali from about noon.
The operation continued until 4.15pm as police sought to block possible escape routes from the hilltop resort.
However, CCTV footage showed that the vehicle believed to have been used by the suspects had passed through a checkpoint before Ops Tutup was launched.
Azry said police were tracking the suspects based on intelligence and investigations conducted by the Bukit Aman Criminal Investigation Department, Pahang CID and Bentong CID.
