Robber in 3-Piece Suit Steals Woman’s Rare Coins, Jewelry

A cool, smooth-talking man in a three-piece suit, carrying two guns in a briefcase, robbed a woman at her Fountain Valley home Saturday and drove off in a late-model Thunderbird with an estimated $113,000 worth of rare American coins and jewelry, police said.

Shortly after Janice Carlson placed an advertisement in a local paper offering for sale a collection of 1,000 rare U.S. coins, Lt. David Brokaw said, she received a call from a man who identified himself as an interested buyer and asked for an appointment to inspect the coins. The man subsequently arrived at Carlson’s Currant Avenue residence in a late-model Ford with Arizona license plates. Witnesses described it as a silver and gray car with a maroon accent.

Carlson’s father was at the residence when the well-dressed man arrived at approximately 11:30 a.m. However, after the man began to examine the collection and engage Carlson in conversation, her father left the house, according to the police spokesman.

The man then opened his briefcase and withdrew a pistol, identifying himself as a professional thief. He donned a pair of gloves and displayed to Carlson another weapon, a Taser, or stun gun, which he told her he would not hesitate to use if she did not cooperate. Carlson was handcuffed and gagged, but not physically harmed, Brokaw said. The man escaped with the coin collection and the woman’s personal jewelry.