CHICAGO — A jewelry store owner lost some of her most valuable pieces in a break-in Thursday night.
Maria Gil, owner of Jayeria Dos Perlas inside the West Elsdon Super Mall, told WGN that thieves broke a window of her jewelry stand Thursday night and stole some of her most valuable items.
According to Gil, one of his employees was closing the stand for the day when the incident occurred.
“When the men showed the gun, she got scared and ran too,” Gil said.
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The three alleged suspects were seen on surveillance video dressed in black and wearing masks. Chicago police said the suspects used a hammer to smash the display case and steal the jewelry before running to a car to escape.
Gil told WGN that the thieves stole more than $300,000 worth of jewelry.
“Yesterday I cried all night. I was so sad,” Gil said. “We work hard and it’s not a good thing that people come and collect the parts because we pay all the money we invested in our business.”
For Gil, Thursday night’s incident feels like déjà vu. She said there were two similar incidents last year where people pretended to try on jewelry and ended up stealing it.
“He (ran away) with the necklace. The price was about $15,000,” Gil recalled.
After these incidents, Gil considered closing up shop for good, but she insists that she won’t let the thieves take away her passion for running a store and remains determined to keep it open.
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“This is my business and it’s the one that keeps me fed and pays my bills,” Gil said. “If I close, what am I going to do?”
Gil added that she and some of the other jewelry stalls inside the mall were considering hiring their own private security to prevent Thursday’s incident from happening again.
No arrests have been made to date.
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