THIS is the shocking moment a store owner fought a group of masked robbers who broke in to steal thousands of dollars worth of jewelery.
Surveillance footage from Olivia’s Fine Jewelery store in Madera, California, shows the moment the crooks stormed the store to raid the jewelery cases.
Some appeared to be holding weapons possibly used to break through the protective glass.
Around five thieves dressed in black with masks on entered the store at 7pm on Thursday evening, just seconds after other customers left.
They leapt over counters and grabbed what they could while one stood by the door as a look out.
The employee who had been behind the counter fled to safety.
However, the group of brazen criminals weren’t expecting the owner of the store to fight back.
Within seconds he emerged from the back of the store pointing his gun at the unsuspecting robbers.
He fired three to five shots at the group who quickly fled the store.
However, the furious owner was not done protecting his property and his employees, many of whom are family members, and he chased the group outside.
The robbers fell out of the door and onto the sidewalk before getting up and running again.
The owner stood guard at the entrance to his store, firing a couple more warning shots as the group disappeared into the night.
Officials from the Madera Police Department have confirmed that no one was shot in the incident.
The thieves managed to take $170,000 worth of high-value jewelery.
“It’s shocking to the conscience. It’s scary to the family because it is a mom-and-pop store with family being your own employees, it’s your own business and your livelihood,” Sergeant Blake Short told ABC affiliate KFSN.
“I believe the store owner did what he felt was necessary at the time.
“We don’t always recommend that in this field. Fortunately, no one was harmed in this situation.”
He explained that an investigation into what took place is ongoing with cops having retrieved the getaway car that the group ditched outside the city limits.
Short said that it does not appear to be the first time the robbers had carried out such a crime and that it was not a spur of the moment smash-and-grab.
“Preliminary investigation shows they were in the area for a little while, we would call that pacing,” he explained.
“This was definitely meticulous. It was thought out. It did not appear to be a first time for these individuals.”
