The victims of a $12.5 million jewelry raid in London have offered rewards of up to $1.9 million to help recover the jewelry and catch the thief.
Part of the property reportedly belongs to art collector Shafira Huang, who is said to be a multi-millionaire Instagram influencer.
A lone thief made off with more than $188,000 worth of designer handbags and jewelry after climbing through a second-floor window at a building in the upmarket Primrose Hill area of north London on December 7. London Met Police said.
The force has released a security camera image of the suspect wearing a dark hoodie and gray baseball cap with his face covered.
Items taken include several unique jeweled necklaces and bracelets, Hermes Crocodile Kelly handbags and $19,000 in cash.
Other stolen items included two De Beers butterfly diamond rings, pink sapphire butterfly earrings from Katherine Wang, and a Van Cleef gold, diamond and sapphire necklace, the BBC reported.
London Met Police
“This is a serious crime where the suspect entered the building while armed with an unknown weapon and breached the sanctuary of the victims' home,” said detective Met Paulo Roberts.
“The suspect has stolen £10.4 million worth of jewellery, much of which is sentimental and unique in design, and therefore easily recognisable,” he said.
A spokesman for the family said the Metro they believed the heist was a “pre-planned professional operation”.
“Everyone is fine, but with only 63 seconds an employee would have been in direct conflict with the thief if they entered the room a little earlier, “said the spokesman. “I can say unequivocally that every window in the house was closed.”
The homeowners, who were not in the building at the time of the robbery, are offering $625,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the suspect.
They are also offering a second reward of 10 percent of the value of any recovered items.
