A selection of $769,500 Tiffany & Co. earrings that were swallowed by a suspected thief in Orlando, Florida, have been recovered.
On Feb. 26, suspect Jaythan Gilder, 32, told the Tiffany store’s employees that he was an assistant for an NBA player and had them bring him high-end jewelry in a VIP room. He took the four earrings and tried to take a ring worth $575,000, the Orlando Police Department said on social media Friday.
A store staff member was able to stop Mr. Gilder from taking the ring, according to the Orlando Sentinel, though the employee was injured in the struggle and had to be treated by the Orlando Fire Department.
After Mr. Gilder fled the store and the mall it’s located in, he was stopped by the Florida Highway Patrol. The cops noticed he had items in his mouth, and a body scan at the jail revealed he had foreign objects in his system.
Mr. Gilder was taken to a hospital and monitored for more than 12 days.
“We worked together tirelessly for days on end, taking different shifts at the hospital, leaving our families, just so we can get this case settled and Tiffany’s back their property,” OPD Detective Tiffany Perez told Orlando’s WKMG-TV.
His body eventually expelled the diamonds, and OPD brought them back to the Tiffany store where staff used serial numbers to confirm they were the right earrings.
Mr. Gilder has been charged with robbery with a mask and first-degree grand theft, according to the Sentinel.
