Police search for thieves who stole about $30k worth of items from Leskes Jewellers, Port Fairy

It took three brazen thieves just 40 seconds to steal about $30,000 worth of jewellery from a Port Fairy jewellers.

Police are searching for three men who stole jewellery from a business in Port Fairy. Picture: Supplied.

Police are hunting three men caught on CCTV in a brazen jewelry heist in Victoria’s southwest, stealing up to $30k of precious items, according to the store’s employees.

Leskes Jewellers in Port Fairy was targeted on September 9, with CCTV capturing the trio about 1.30am.

The three thieves approached the store located on Bank St, before breaking into the business and taking valuable items.

Creative design director Bronwyn Stolarik said the offenders reportedly had crowbars to break through the bulletproof glass.

“It took them about 40 seconds to smash through and make a hole, enough to put their hand in and grab as much as they could,” Ms Stolarik said.

Ms Stolarik got the call from security about 1.30am when the crime took place.

When she arrived at the store eight minutes late, the thieves had vanished.

“It was really quick, but when we looked at security footage they actually drove from 10.30 at night and they kept circling and driving past, then they walked past a few times and there was three of them,” she said.

“They just pulled up vertical to the shop, one guy pulled up and then two got out and then they started smashing away at the window and it took them about 40 seconds to get in.”

Ms Stolarik said it was really bizarre as Port Fairy is a quiet little town.

“You just can’t imagine having an alarm going off and people making all this noise and no one heard or saw anything,” she said.

“The items stolen were generic, such as diamond studs and jewellery that you can buy from a lot of other stores and would have been easy for the thieves to sell.”

Custom made jewellery would have been harder for the thieves to onsell, she said, because “they’re quite different”.

“I often get calls to come up and check if the alarm has been triggered and sometimes it’s a moth flying around the shop,” Ms Stolarik said.

“Once I got up here and realized the glass was all over the street and all the displays that were in the window were on the street as well, it was a bit alarming to think that it actually happened.”

Police have released CCTV footage of a suspicious vehicle parked nearby while the burglary took place. Picture: Eyewatch Warrnambool Police Service.

Ms Stolarik believes the trio had scoped out the business a few times to prepare for the break-in.

“They know who we are but we don’t know who they are, so they know our faces because they have obviously came past a few times,” she said.

“Whether they have come in and pretended to be customers, you just don’t know. When you’re looking over the footage, it makes you weary and keeping your eyes out for anyone that might fit that description.”

The store has cameras both in and outside but the thieves are mostly unidentifiable, Ms Stolarik said.

“They covered their faces quite well and had gloves on, so there was nothing identifying and there was no DNA or anything left behind so that’s where the cops were pretty sure they have done this before,” she said.

A Victoria Police spokeswoman said the investigation was still ongoing, and police have released CCTV stills of the three people they believe to be involved.

Anyone with information on the incident should Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.