Stewart Dawsons jewellery store robbed in Auckland by eight masked thugs
>
Terrifying moment when armed thugs barge into a jewelry store before a hero shop assistant tries to force them down while frightened guards do little but watch from a distance
- About eight masked men robbed a jeweler in an Auckland Westfield
- The robbers stormed the Stewart Dawsons in St Lukes Westfield on Tuesday
- Brave shopper confronted the villains and yelled at them to leave the center
- A shop assistant nearby mistook the robbers’ batons for guns and hiding customers
- She rolled down the metal door of her shop and led the customers into a back room
<!–
<!–
<!–<!–
<!–
<!–
<!–
Brutal masked thugs burst into a jewelry store and smashed glass cases to rob the store of precious items.
Shoppers ran for cover when the eight men robbed the Stewart Dawsons store in Auckland’s St Lukes Westfield at 5pm on Tuesday.
Video shows the robbers storming into the store, snatching jewelry and using batons to smash into the store before fleeing the mall.
A brave shop lady tried to hold the thieves afloat and repeatedly yelled at them to ‘go away’, but they ignored her.
Eight masked robbers attacked a Stewart Dawsons jeweler in St Lukes Westfield on Tuesday (pictured, the masked robbers who fled the store carrying expensive jewellery)
A security guard also jogged after the group as they fled, while terrified shoppers sought shelter in nearby stores.
A robber threatened a passerby with his baton before leaving the store.
A brave shop assistant at nearby fashion store Max said she heard glass breaking and screaming before seeing one of the robbers holding a large baton that she mistook for a gun.
She sprang into action immediately, rolling down her shop shutters and locking the doors.
She then hid customers in a back room where they waited for the masked men to leave.
A nearby store clerk hid customers in the back room of her store after mistaking the robbers’ batons for firearms (pictured, one of the masked robbers threatening witnesses with a baton)
Police said they are still forcibly investigating the theft and will regularly patrol the St Lukes Westfield shopping center (above)
The robbers made off with the stolen jewelry a short time later.
Officers later found an abandoned Toyota Corolla Axio about a mile from the crime scene, on Taylors Road, which they believed was being used as a getaway vehicle.
Blood was found on the outside of the stolen car and jewelry left behind on the adjacent road.
Auckland City West Area Commander Inspector Alisse Robertson said police were following clues to the aggravated robbery but have made no arrests yet.
The masked robbers used large batons to smash glass cabinets in the luxury jewelry store before fleeing the scene (photo, the store after the attack)
“The community can rest assured that our employees are working hard to identify the perpetrators and hold them accountable,” she said.
“We understand that this incident would have been an alarming experience for staff and other witnesses at the complex.
“There will be more police in the area and we will continue to patrol the complex on foot on a regular basis.”
Anyone with information about the attack is asked to contact police.