Rise in Rolex Watch Thefts Prompts Police Warning

Los Angeles police reported Friday that wearers of pricey Rolex watches fell victim to robbery at the rate of one each day during August and warned that the thieves may be carefully studying the daily routines of their intended victims.

Police said the crimes follow a familiar pattern in which thieves target those who wear the most expensive Rolex timepieces--preferably top-of-the-line models such as the President, which sells for $10,000 and more.

“There are several cases in which, clearly, the robbers knew a lot about their victims,” Wilshire Division Police Detective Aaron Martin said. “Victims who wear Rolex Presidents have been approached on days when they happened to have left their watches at home. They were asked to give up watches they weren’t wearing.”

Police on Friday also released composite sketches of two suspects in a recent killing in West Los Angeles that occurred during a Rolex robbery attempt.

Detectives are looking for two men who went to a popular nursery on La Cienega Boulevard and shot owner Donald McKinsey after he fended off the would-be robbers’ attempts to wrest away his $13,000 Rolex President.

According to the detectives, the men had gone to the nursery the day before the Aug. 3 shooting and told employees that they had an appointment with the owner. Employees told the men that they were not scheduled to meet McKinsey and that the owner was unavailable.

The gunmen returned on Aug. 3 and met McKinsey in a secluded part of the nursery, police said. While discussing a floral wedding arrangement, the men attempted to take McKinsey’s Rolex, then fired on the owner. Fatally wounded, McKinsey reportedly staggered toward his office and collapsed, still clutching his watch. He was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital.

On Friday, police also announced a $25,000 reward for information leading to the capture of the killers, who fled the shooting scene in a yellow Lincoln Town Car.

Five other Rolex robberies were reported in the Wilshire Division area this month. Authorities in Hollywood, West Los Angeles, Santa Monica and Beverly Hills also reported multiple watch thefts in August. This year, there have been three murders connected with the Rolex robberies.

While detectives were careful not to advise against purchasing expensive watches, they warned of the violence that the watches can attract.

“We are not in the position to recommend what kind of jewelry people can wear or not wear,” Martin said. “The issue that has been raised is that (potential) victims need to decide how important it is to wear that watch.”

Detectives said the watches have been a symbol of luxury for years, and it is difficult to isolate what has spurred the recent wave of thefts. The relative ease with which stolen Rolexes are resold may be one explanation, police said.

“There is so much demand from legitimate citizens who want to pay half-price for used watches,” Wilshire Division Detective John McCarley said. “As long as there is a demand, there will be a supply.”

McCarley said a stolen watch with an original retail price of $10,000 is typically resold for about $2,000.

“Let’s be honest . . . they are nice watches,” Martin said.