Crime & Safety

Police: Rolex Watches Worth $609K Stolen From Pentagon City Mall

Investigators are looking into whether latest robbery is related to similar incident in early February.

Four men wearing hoods and armed with a hammer rushed the Pentagon City mall this morning and smashed their way into a case full of Rolex watches in a brazen day-light robbery, then jumped into a get-away car with a bag full of more than $600,000 in goods, according to Arlington County Police officials. 

The four men — three were dressed in dark clothes; the fourth, in red — entered Tourneau, a high-end watch retailer, at about 10:37 a.m., police spokesman Dustin Sternbeck told Patch.

Surveillance video indicates one man pulled out a hammer and struck a glass display case "several times," Sternbeck said.

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Half of the case shattered; one individual started grabbing watches while his accomplice began hammering at the other side of the case. When that side shattered, the remaining men grabbed watches, too, according to police reports.

The four ran outside and reportedly hopped in a getaway car that was waiting outside with a driver. Investigators said they don't know which way the dark gray, four-door sedan escaped.

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"They literally were inside the store … less than 30 seconds," Sternbeck said.

Tourneau is immediately inside the mall's South Hayes Street entrance.

No one was injured. The quartet did not threaten anyone or otherwise interact with mall patrons or employees, Sternbeck said.

Police said they are planning to release still photos and perhaps video of the incident later today.

The watch incident follows a similar robbery in early February at the mall.

In that case, police said four men entered the Zales in the Pentagon City mall and got away with 27 rings totaling about $128,000 in a smash-and-grab robbery.

"It's too early to tell at this time, but we'll look into the possibility if they are related," Sternbeck said.

Police are asking anyone with information on the identities or whereabouts of these individuals to contact Detective Paula Brockenborough at 703-228-4241 or at pbrockenborough@arlingtonva.us. To report information anonymously, contact the Arlington County Crime Solvers at 866-411-8477.

This article has been updated to include Brockenborough's contact information and two security camera stills.


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