Robbers dressed as elderly men in jewelry store heist

BROOKHAVEN, Ga. — Two robbers disguised as elderly men got away with hundreds of thousands of dollars in jewelry.

The heist happened Tuesday at a jewelry store on Dresden Drive in Brookhaven.

Police say the men were wearing professional grade masks when they were buzzed into the store around 11:20 a.m.

Surveillance video shows one man hunched over and hobbling with a limp as if he needed assistance.

But once they got inside, the act was over.

Police say they ambushed the owner and his daughter with pepper spray, then zip tied them in the back room while they stole the jewelry.

“My eyes completely blacked out and then he started screaming, ‘Get down on the floor!’ And things went from there very quick," the owner told Channel 2’s Liz Artz.

The owner did not want to show his face, but told us a third employee was forced to unlock jewelry cabinets.

“Opening the cases and take the stuff out. They were screaming, ‘You have money? You have cash?’” the owner said.

Police gave Artz surveillance video that shows the men snatching hundreds of thousands of dollars in Rolex watches and stuffing them into bags.

“They came specifically for that because I see the jewelry over there and they didn't take that,” the owner said.

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Police say the robbery lasted less than three minutes.

“It was a matter of seconds. Boom, boom, one, two, three and you’re done,” the owner said.

The owner says all the watches have serial numbers, but they’ll likely be sold on the black market.

“It’s either going to be sold on the streets or eBay maybe,” he said.

The owner is offering a $10,000 reward for the arrest and conviction of the men who attacked him and his employees.

“(The woman in the video) is doing better. The pepper spray though is very painful,” he said.

Police say the men ran back across Dresden Drive and into the neighborhood across the street, where they disappeared.

If you have any information about the robbery, call CrimeStoppers at 404-577-8477. You can remain anonymous and be eligible for a reward

Cox Media Group