Jewelry Store Robbers May Have Thrown Loot Onto Freeway

Armed robbers stole jewelry from a store at the Shops at Mission Viejo this afternoon in a smash-and-grab heist.

A tracking device later led police to the 405 Freeway where witnesses saw someone throwing a bag out of the getaway car.

The masked robbers smashed a couple of glass cases and grabbed gems from the Fredric H. Rubel store at the mall, according to Carrie Braun of the Orange County Sheriff’s Department.

It was not immediately clear how much the valuables were worth.

Deputies were called to the mall at 12:54 p.m., Braun said. Initial reports of shots fired turned out to be untrue, she said. The four robbers were armed, but investigators suspect witnesses heard glass shattering, not guns firing, Braun said.

Sheriff’s Lt. Jeff Hallock said investigators picked up the gunmen’s trail through a tracking device on jewelry that indicated the robbers were on the San Diego (405) Freeway in the Costa Mesa area after the heist.

Witnesses reported seeing someone throw a bag out of the getaway vehicle in that area, Hallock said. Investigators believe some of the stolen jewelry is in the bag, which authorities were attempting to recover, he said.

City News Service; Photo: Shutterstock