Watch: Daytime armed robbery strikes 40-year-old Oakland Chinatown jewelry store
Phuong Jewelry, one of Oakland Chinatown’s oldest jewelry stores, faced an armed daytime robbery described as one of the most brazen incidents in the store’s 40-year history.
Key points:
- The store was ransacked by eight armed suspects at around 12:30 p.m. on Wednesday, resulting in extensive damage and the loss of around 85 to 90% of the shop’s inventory, reported ABC 7.
The details:
- In surveillance footage of the incident, Diane, the 69-year-old co-owner, can be seen ducking for cover and screaming as the suspects smash nearly every glass case in the shop and steal their jewelry.
- Her 76-year-old husband later intervenes with a firearm, prompting the suspects to flee.
- The family, devastated by the loss and compounded by the lapse in business insurance due to rising premiums, faces uncertainty about the future of the business.
- “We’ve been robbed a few times before but not at this level of brazen magnitude. Eight individuals and two getaway cars and guns drawn,” the owners’ son, Tony Trinh, told ABC 7. “My mom was devastated and my dad was broken. It’s rough, my mom is the leader of the pack – when she suffers I suffer the same thing from her.”
- However, Trinh, who is executive director of the Oakland Chinatown Improvement Council, remains optimistic about the progress in Oakland’s Chinatown and the community’s resilience.
What’s next:
- Despite challenges, Diane said she will be heading back to work on Friday. According to Tony, “the only way to reduce crime is to have more traffic, events [and] people to get more resources,” noting that residents cannot let fear overcome the Oakland Chinatown community.
- A GoFundMe campaign has been initiated by the Oakland Chinatown Improvement Council to help the family recover from the significant loss. As of this writing, the fundraiser has raised $6,990 donations out of its $50,000 goal.
- Meanwhile, the Oakland Police are currently investigating the robbery. They are urging anyone with information to contact their robbery division.
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