GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. — A Cumming, Georgia man is now facing five charges, four for robbery and one for battery, after allegedly committing thefts across multiple jewelry stores and pepper-spraying a bystander. The robberies added up to over $39,000 in stolen jewelry, the Gwinnett County Police Department said in a news release.
The thefts occurred at different times, spanning from Dec. 24 of last year to Jan. 5, across four different jewelry stores, authorities say.
On Dec. 24, 2021 police responded to a theft call at Helzberg Diamonds at the Mall of Georgia. A manager handed a man a pair of earrings valued at $4,500. In a snatch and grab crime, the suspect ran off with the item, according to police.
On Dec. 27, 2021, officers responded to another reported snatch and grab crime. This time, the incident occurred at the Mall of Georgia's Diamond Ring Company, police said. A mask-wearing man entered the store and snatched a pair of earrings valued at $10,999 from an employee's hand.
Days later on Dec. 29, 2021, police responded to a robbery at the Sugarloaf Mills Mall. A man entered the mall's Jewelry Box Outlet store, asked an employee to see a diamond ring, snatched the ring from an employee and ran out of the door, police said.
After a fourth snatch and grab incident, police arrested a suspect in connection to the crimes.
On Thursday officers responded to a theft call out of Sugarloaf Mills Mall's Zales jewelry store. A white male allegedly entered the store, asked to see a diamond ring, snatched it from an employee and fled the scene. A passerby that had heard a store employee yell during the incident, attempted to stop the robbery in progress, according to officers. However, the bystander was pepper-sprayed in the face and the suspect successfully fled the scene.
After running out of the store and into the mall parking lot, a witness managed to capture the suspect's vehicle license plate -- which police used to locate and arrest the 32-year-old man, they said. Authorities said the robber is currently being held without bond.
