Owner of Heist Jewelry Store in Santa Monica Hit With Sledgehammer While Thwarting Robbery; 4 Arrested

The owner of Heist Jewelry in Santa Monica was hit with a sledgehammer while thwarting a robbery at his store Thursday, officials said.

The robbery occurred about 2:35 p.m. at the store along the 1200 block of Montana Avenue, according to the Santa Monica Police Department. One of the suspects went into the store with his face covered and smashed a jewelry display case with a sledgehammer. The owner intervened and was able to push the suspect out of the store, police said. A second suspect, also carrying a sledgehammer, approached the owner and hit him with the weapon. During the struggle, the owner managed to take the suspect’s sweater off, who then tried to conceal his face, surveillance video from inside the store showed. The two suspects were able to get away in an awaiting car, police said. Witnesses called police and provided responding officers with a description of the vehicle the suspects were in. Police spotted the vehicle in the 1100 block of Wilshire Boulevard, stopped the car and took three people into custody without incident, police said. A fourth suspect who was not able to get away during the initial crime was eventually found near Euclid Street and Idaho Avenue. Three of the four suspects were described as juveniles. The adult was booked on suspicion of conspiracy to commit a crime, assault with a deadly weapon and robbery, while the juveniles were booked on suspicion of conspiracy to commit a crime, robbery and assault. Police have not identified any of the suspects. No further details about the incident were released Friday.