Man Runs Off With Rolex After Fireworks Went Off At Sawgrass Mills Mall
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SUNRISE (CBSMiami) -- Sunrise Police are searching for a man who stole a Rolex watch worth more than $11,000 from a store at Sawgrass Mills Mall.
Surveillance video shows the man they're looking for, described as a white Hispanic, at a Zales outlet inside the mall on New Year's Eve.
You can see the man wearing khaki pants and a dark-colored sweater looking at watches and talking to an associate at the store.
Moments later, a second suspect, not known to police set off fireworks outside the store in order to possibly cause a distraction.
The noise sent employees and shoppers ducking for cover.
That's when the suspect inside the store ran away still wearing the watch valued at $11,400.
Shoppers reported hearing gunfire inside the mall but Sunrise police say it was firecrackers. They say it was the work of a possible accomplice.
An employee remembers the day. She wasn't at work but said her coworkers were in a panic.
"Employees called me. They were scared....they were hiding in the back room," the employee told CBS4's Silva Harapetian.
This was the fourth incident that has caused chaos at malls.
In Westland Mall, reports of a shooting sent shoppers running frantically. It turned out to be unfounded.
There were similar reports at other malls.
The night before Christmas, there was panic at Aventura Mall after reports of what sounded like gunfire. Police didn't find any evidence of a shooting.
Anyone with information is urged to call Broward County Crime Stoppers at (954) 493-TIPS.