'It Was A Really Bold Move': 89-Year-Old Man's Wedding Ring Stolen From His Hand In South Sacramento
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) – It's been 26 years since James and Janice Sweatt were married and they haven't taken off their wedding rings since then.
On Monday, James' wedding ring left his finger and not by choice.
He told CBS13 that a woman, seen on his home security cameras, came up to him in his garage as he was getting into his powered wheelchair and asked if he wanted to buy jewelry from her.
He thought it was all fake.
"I told her I don't want to buy it. I said, 'I appreciate you if you get out of my yard.' I said, 'Get out, please. Get out of here,'" he said.
James said that the woman didn't leave and only moved in closer.
"All of a sudden she grabbed my hand," he said.
The 89-year-old man's wedding ring was being ripped from his own hand.
"I thought the skin might have been coming off with it," he said. "She got to pulling and tugging and pulling."
James' 14-karat-gold three-diamond wedding ring that his wife bought for him was stripped away – and the woman was gone.
Sacramento police say that detectives are looking to identify the woman in the security video.
"For this lady to do that, it was a really bold move," Janice said. "His ring meant a lot to him like mine means a lot to me. I wouldn't want to lose mine. They'd have to cut my finger off to get mine."
Luckily, James was uninjured in the ring robbery.
"I didn't want to hurt myself. I didn't want to fall in the garage. If I'd have fell, I can't get up," he said.
It's a lasting impression of a memorable ring that was taken from this family that's calling a crime of opportunity.
"The boldness of it is just too much. And I wouldn't want it to happen to anyone. Again we're just blessed and thankful he wasn't hurt," Janice said.
James and his wife feel that the woman was really after his wallet during this ordeal and took the ring instead. He said he'll be taking more precautions whenever he goes outside in the future.
"I hope that she gets caught and gets punished about it," James said.