The New York Police Department continues to search for a male suspect, who stole jewelry from the Title of Work store in downtown Manhattan.
A man entered the store at 57 Orchard Street around 10:30 a.m. on April 18 and started removing property and placing it into his pockets, according to the NYPD. When approached by an employee, the suspect displayed a knife and pointed it at him, before fleeing on foot northbound on Orchard Street.
Video footage of the incident that has been circulating online in recent days shows Title of Work’s owner Jonathan Meizler confronting the thief, and at one point blocking the store’s entrance before the thief ran down the street. Meizler said Thursday that he had been standing outside of his store talking to a neighboring business owner when he saw the suspect pass by and enter the store. The designer said he immediately clocked him as “sketchy,” reentered the store and saw him take $3,000 worth of necklaces. NYPD confirmed that figure Thursday.
Meizler said he told the suspect “to drop the necklaces,” but he refused to, which led to Meizler “manhandling” him. At one point, the suspect showed that he had a knife so Meizler backed away and the thief ran down the street. Meizler said he chased the man for 10 or 15 blocks, while shouting “Thief! Call the police.” The storeowner claimed that four strangers did, as did he as he ran after the suspect. He also claimed that he warned that the suspect had a knife.
Recalling how he was dressed in all black and wearing black sunglasses as if he were part of “SWAT,” the founder said, “It was like a scene from a movie. I was like, ‘I can’t believe this is happening.’”
No injuries were reported and no arrests have been made, as the investigation remains ongoing, according to NYPD.
Title of Work is a 12-year-old sustainability-minded jewelry brand that has been worn by Tom Cruise, Robert Pattinson and other celebrities. The store has been located on Orchard Street for the past seven years. Based and made in New York, the brand has developed a following for its day-in-the-life style campaign with personalities like pro motorcycle racer Joe Robert, the band Quarters of Change, and model Betsy Gaghan and her musician partner Jasper Harris.
Betsy Gaghan and Jasper Harris
After the incident, the founder said he sent surveillance video footage and other imagery via WhatsApp with a group of Lower East Side stores that keep each other abreast of any shoplifting in the area. That has become a practice with some independent boutique owners that have been targeted by shoplifters in the past few years.
Joe Robert
The 61-year-old Meizler, who said he is not a runner, estimated that the suspect was half his age. He said he responded the way he did, due to “all the adrenaline kicked in.” The designer said, “I’m not a big guy. I’m just under 6 foot, but I’m strong. I just had to stop him from taking the jewelry. It’s just not right.”
During the pursuit of the suspect, a good Samaritan intervened and the suspect dropped his cell phone. After picking it up, Meizler said he told the offender to give him the jewelry in exchange for the cell phone, but he did not. The storeowner said that when the thief refused to with a look of desperation, he felt “a little bit empathetic” for him. “It spoke volumes for where we’re at right now,” Meizler said.
The Title of Work owner has not heard from any of its high-profile clients and the store has not seen an increase in shoppers due to the media coverage. But Meizler said he has been asked why he would chase a knife-wielding thief who was half his age. “It was just a violation. I don’t like to be violated,” he said.
#Celebrity #Jewelry #Designer #Confronts #Thief #NYC #Store #Robbery
