Jewelleries at the centre of micro-crime

Evolved and integrated security systems needed


According to the OSSIF "Inter-sectoral report on Predatory Crime rate 2016” – Research Centre of the Italian Banking Association on Anti-crime Security, the thefts committed to the detriment of jewelleries in 2015 have been 387, basically one per day. That is an alarming figure, even though it marks an improvement compared to 2014, year in which the number of crimes was 12 % higher (as reported in the magazine “Safety” of November 2017).

Threats arise in various ways, from the extraordinary and elaborate attacks until the petty thefts. The same thing is true for time, the news often reports both robberies in broad daylight, committed during the opening times, and robberies at night.

Thanks to the evolution of the security solutions such as: security doors, interlocked door systems, metal detectors, video surveillance etc. the crimes are occurring more and more at night, hours when it is possible to act more freely and without the direct involvement of employees, customers or security guards. This is also confirmed by the words of Marco Martino, Head of the Mobile Team of Turin: “today the criminal is more oriented to commit thefts, maybe in series, overcoming lower barriers such as walls and partitions at one in the morning, to get to export the content of a safe or of armored closets inside a shop of valuables.

According to data, robberies affect both little towns and big cities and, in the latter case, not only the suburban zones, but also the old town. In these cases, the behaviour of gangs can be totally unpredictable: if they often try to move very discreetly, in organized and very little groups and dressed elegantly so as not to catch the eye, there are also situations in which they start actions typical to all intents and purposes of the cinema.

Indeed, the methods of operation can be discreet or whimsical. In both cases the most important hits (the millionaire ones) are often carried out by gangs capable of acting on an international scale.

News flash

Milan – The millionaire robbery that, about one year ago, in the heart of the fashion district, damaged a jewellery in broad daylight of Montenapoleone Street caused a stir: the prisoners had adopted the same operative procedures of the “Pink Panthers” gang, specialized in big shots in the jewellery stores of the main European cities. After pretending to be simple customers, the group of criminals who sprang into action, after an inspection carried out some days before, was able to act rapidly, with exceptional determination and operative precision, tying feet and hands of the employee with plastic ties and delaying the possibility of raising the alarm once concluded the robbery. The criminals, who turned out to be Serbians, had the “bad luck” of finding a shop assistant who knew their language and understood a word that they exchanged, allowing to narrow the list in the investigation. In the meantime, what proved to be important was the collection of images of the video surveillance systems of that area, which permitted to follow the criminals during the early stages of their escape.

Florence - Robbery in a famous jewellery of the old town on 18th October 2017. At the end of the morning, two men got into the shop threatening the owner and the employee, then tied with plastic ties. There was concern from all the political exponents, the director of Confcommercio Toscana Franco Marinoni claimed: "The violence with which the robbery was committed really shocked us, in addition to the fact that Vacchereccia street is a stone’s throw away from Piazza della Signoria".

Siena - A robbery with a violent background was committed in the evening of 14th November 2017, in a jewellery of the shopping centre in Rosselli square. According to what has been reconstructed by the police, the thieves, two men who didn’t wear masks, around 9 p.m. got into the shop and attacked the shop assistant, who was turning off the lights. Then, threatening her, they forced her to open the safe and, after having tied her arms with plastic ties and having locked her into a warehouse, escaped carrying with them jewels, diamonds and cash. It was a security guard of the shopping centre who raised the alarm, having found the shop assistant locked up and tied up in the warehouse. The loot has yet to be quantified.

Paris - A few years ago, with the aim of covering their escape, in Paris a criminal gang of 15 thieves used hatchets to break the shop windows of a famous jewellery of rue de la Paix, one of the luxurious focal points in the French capital.

More security systems in parallel

The fact of installing more security systems in parallel is becoming more and more important, a real deterrent that can distract the criminals from accomplishing the act, or in many cases slow down the action and so: reduce the total loot, avoid the capture of hostages, chase off the criminals, etc.

Whilst cameras are becoming a must in all security systems, every Security Manager knows that the video surveillance on its own cannot stop the criminal, and so are needed solutions of:

  • Access Control (see Interlocked doors, anti-robbery security booths, security portals)
  • High-degree anti-burglary solutions (see armored Doors, armored display cabinets, high security shutters)
  • Anti-robbery solutions (see security booths with unique passage)
  • Delayed opening of strong vehicles (see time delay systems, etc.)
  • Centralization and control of high security locks (also remotely, at km distance)