DARING JEWEL RAID.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVIII, Issue 21030, 14 November 1931, Page 8

DARING JEWEL RAID.

SHOP WINDOW SMASHED. GOODS VALUED AT £IOOO. 7 WORK OF A FEW SECONDS. The daring thieves who have been smashing the windows of suburban jewellery shops in Melbourne and escaping j n a motor-car with trays of diamond rings valued afc several hundreds of pounds, made what may be styled their usual Friday night appearance on the evening of October 16. The latest victim is' Mr. F. Killings worth, whose large jewellery establish ment is situated in South Melbourne, in the centre of a busy shopping location As the fruits of this raid the gang obtained the largest haul they havp yet made since they commenced the audacious series of robberies. Trays of diamond rings and single rings set in boxes, which are valued at between £3OO arid £IOOO, were stolen. The raid was carried out with amazing swiftness, and there were few eye-witnesses to give the police an account of the details of the coup

Shortly before 7 o'clock Mr. A. E Henkel, proprietor of a hairdresser's shop adjoining Mr. Killingsworth's premises, from his saloon saw a motor-ear pull up outside the jeweller's shop. The engine almost stalled, and the car bounded forward several times in low gear before it finally stopped. A well-dressed young man, wearing a grey hat and a blue suit, stepped out of the car. Mr. Henkel was unable to state whether there was anybody else in the car.

The next minute there was a loud crash. Running out, of his shop, Mr. Henkel saw that the jeweller's window had been smashed. Although only a few seconds had elapsed since the raid was effected, the robbers were already speeding away. Mr. Kiilingsworth was alone in the shop reading a newspaper when the thieves broke the window. He stated that, besides the loss of about £IOOO worth of jewellery,, his display shelves and anothar large quantity of jewellery were damaged by the brick and large piece of blue metal wrapped in paper which were thrown into the window. He picked up several diamond rings which in their haste the thieves had dropped as they hurried to the waiting motor-car.