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Authorities Release Photos Of Milpitas Mall Smash And Grab Suspects

MILPITAS (CBS SF) – Police in Milpitas on Monday released photos from surveillance video of suspects in a smash and grab robbery that caused a panic in the Great Mall in Milpitas.

"Hopefully somebody out there in the public knows who these suspects are, and will come forward and help us bring these three people to justice," said Milpitas Police Capt. Raj Maharaj.

Police describe the three suspects as black men wearing black hooded sweatshirts with "U.S. Polo Assn" in white letters on the right sleeves. They escaped in a black 4-door sedan.

The robbery happened just after 7:30 p.m. at the Valliani Jewelers store Sunday evening. The suspects stole an unspecified amount of jewelry before fleeing the mall.

Milpitas Great Mall jewelry store robbery
Milpitas Great Mall jewelry store robbery (Milpitas Police Department)

Milpitas police obtained security camera footage of the suspects from the Great Mall of the Bay Area, Valliani Jewelers and other nearby businesses and released photos from that footage.

The smash-and-grab robbery caused panic at the Great Mall Sunday evening, prompting a lockdown with people inside fearing a shooting had occurred.

By around 8:40 p.m. Sunday, Milpitas Police tweeted that they had found no evidence of a shooting.

"I mean you have Gilroy and El Paso and Dayton happening pretty recently so it's kind of understandable," said Spencer Tseng, who was shopping at the Great Mall the day after the incident.

Detectives are also in contact with the Modesto Police Department regarding an investigation into a similar incident earlier the same day at the Valliani Jewelers at Vintage Faire Mall.

On Monday, police could not confirm if the suspects from the two incidents are the same, but investigators are comparing surveillance images to determine if the two cases are connected.

"Based on the time frame of the Modesto police department incident and ours, the possibility could be there, but i don't want to say they are at this point," said Maharaj.

The Milpitas Police Department is seeking the public's assistance in identifying the suspects involved in the theft incident at Valliani Jewelers located at the Great Mall.

Anyone with information is encouraged to call the Milpitas Police Department at (408) 586-2400. Additionally, the information can be given anonymously by calling the Crime Tip Hotline at (408) 586-2500 or via the Milpitas Police Department website.

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