Police: Couple Sought For Stealing $200K Worth Of Fur Coats From High-End Madison Avenue Stores
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Two slick thieves walked into high-end clothing stores on Madison Avenue, and walked out with hundreds of thousands of dollars' worth of fur.
As CBS2's Steve Langford reported, the high-end heist was caught on surveillance camera, and police were searching Wednesday for the man and woman who committed the thefts.
Police said the pair took coats from the Loro Piana Fur store, at 748 Madison Ave. near 65th Street, and the J. Mendel Sable, at 787 Madison Ave. near 67th Street, last month.
The suspects, affecting a stylish shopper look, are seen on camera at J. Mendel moving swiftly toward the furs. The man takes a coat off the rack, and appears swiftly to shove the fancy fur up his own winter coat.
The customers are then seeing taking a look at another coat. And then with a certain theatrical flair, the man points at something across the room and the pair quickly exits.
Police said the coat they swiped from J. Mendel was worth $180,000. The coat they took from Loro Piana a few days earlier was worth about $20,000.
"I'm actually surprised at how easily they were able to get in, grab the fur, and leave without being challenged," said security expert and former FBI Special Agent Manuel Gomez.
Gomez said he believes someone cased the joints before the high-end heists.
"They must have been here before. They must have noticed and realized that security is lax; that the furs are not locked away; that nobody's going to be on top of them at all times, as they should be in a high-end store like this," Gomez said.
Furrier Marc Kaufman believes the stolen coat, likely Russian sable and among the world's finest, had been tried on previously by someone who wanted a deal.
"I think this coat was stolen for a particular customer that gave the order to some underground market to actually steal the coat," Kaufman said.
Many were shocked by the thieves' audacity.
"I think it's incredible that people are brazen enough to walk into a store and just walk out with such an expensive item," one woman said.
"There's some people who are good at that, it's a bad trait of human nature unfortunately," one woman said.
"I think it's incredible that people are brazen enough to walk into a store and just walk out with such an expensive item," another woman said. "It's incredible that with all the cameras and alarm systems that they were able to get away with it."
"Somebody's not doing their job," another woman said.
Neither store is commenting on the heists, CBS2's Steve Langford reported.
Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 800-577-tips, visit www.nypdcrimestoppers.com or text tips to 274637 (crimes) then enter tip577.
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