An estimated $1 million in jewelry was stolen from a store inside New Jersey's Ocean County Mall during an overnight heist, according to police.
Investigators said that sometime during the night between Wednesday and Thursday, at least one burglar broke into Venzio Jewelers by cutting a hole in the wall of an adjacent empty storefront.
Tom Rivers Police believe whoever is responsible for the crime snipped the phone and alarm cables and then used a torch to break into a large safe before ransacking the jewelry store.
Brandon Goldner, a reporter for CBS Philadelphia, posted photos of the crime scene on social media platform X.
A mall customer told the outlet that crime doesn't usually happen in the mall area.
"Obviously, it was well-planned, that was for sure. They knew exactly what they were doing. It wasn't a spur of the moment," said the customer, declining to give their full name. "It took some time to decide how to get in there and make the robbery successful."
Another customer told CBS News that whoever planned the heist was extremely knowledgeable.
"The way they broke in on the next door, empty store, go into the wall," Tom Otani said. "They knew what they were doing."
While the mall was open for business as usual on Friday, Venzio Jewelers remains closed until further notice.
