Gold thieves raid 11 JCPenneys

The first break-in took place in September 2006, when gold was selling for about $587 an ounce. The thieves lay low until last December before striking again, perhaps enticed by the price of gold hovering around $800 an ounce.

As the price of the precious metal continued to zoom to more than $1,000 an ounce, the thieves’ activity increased until they had stolen about $2.5 million worth of gold jewelry from 11 JCPenney stores throughout California.

“It’s a strange series of crimes, to target only JCPenney stores,” said Jim Amormino, a spokesman for the Orange County Sheriff’s Department. “Then they steal only the gold and don’t even touch the more expensive jewelry.”

The first store to get hit was in Palm Desert. After a 15-month break, the thieves broke into the JCPenney in Westminster. Since Jan. 3, stores have been burglarized in Thousand Oaks, Northridge, Santa Ana, Escondido and El Cajon.

The two latest burglaries occurred Friday, when three thieves broke into the Laguna Hills store about 2:30 a.m. and then traveled about 35 miles south to Carlsbad, where they struck 90 minutes later.

This was the second time they had broken into two stores on the same day, committing burglaries in the Northern California communities of Cupertino and Pleasanton on Jan. 26.

Authorities have tied the same gang to the burglaries because of the similarity of the heists.

Typically, two to four masked burglars break into a store in the early-morning hours. Although alarms are triggered, the thieves work quickly, forcing open or smashing the display cases and taking only gold jewelry, police said.

Carlsbad Police Lt. Kelly Cain said the thieves were so brazen that they were not deterred even when store janitors stumbled onto the burglaries.

“JCPenney officials have told us they’ve been interrupted by the janitorial staff on two occasions, and they still continued” with the burglaries, he said.

“They’re probably very experienced criminals who case their targets and are very committed to their cause.”

Although the thieves have not brandished weapons during the break-ins, Cain said they are considered dangerous because they do not seem concerned by being seen breaking into display cases.

Video from the Laguna Hills theft shows three people wearing gloves, ski masks and dark clothing running through the store with crowbars they had used to pry open and break display cases. They stashed the jewelry inside cloth bags.

Amormino said investigators believed the burglars hid inside the Laguna Hills store until it closed because there was no sign of forced entry. Police said the store in Carlsbad was broken into.

The thieves appear “to know their business” because the jewelry they take is difficult to trace even if it is fenced, Amormino said. Investigators believe the gold probably is being melted down and sold.

“Gold has been selling at $1,000 an ounce or so,” he said. “We think that’s the motivation” for the burglaries.

The metal was selling for about $870 an ounce Tuesday.

Why JCPenney? Why not a well-known jewelry store such as Tiffany or a more upscale department store such as Neiman Marcus or Saks Fifth Avenue?

Amormino said investigators believe the thieves may include an employee or former employee who is familiar with store security.

Whoever they are, Escondido Police Lt. Craig Carter said, “they appear to be very confident in what they’re doing” and leave virtually no traceable evidence behind.

J.C. Penney Co. officials did not return calls seeking comment, but police officials said the company was offering a $20,000 reward for information leading to a conviction.

--

hgreza@latimes.com