Geelong grandmother’s stolen jewellery recovered by police in Footscray storage locker

They weren’t looking for it but police have found $26,000 worth of stolen jewellery belonging to a Geelong grandmother while searching a Melbourne storage locker.

Lucy Berndt had her jewellery stolen from her car while babysitting her grandchildren. Picture: Brad Fleet

They weren’t looking for it but police have found $26,000 worth of stolen jewellery belonging to a Geelong grandmother while searching a storage locker in Braybrook.

The jewellery had been nicked when Lucy Berndt’s car was broken into while parked out the front of her daughter’s house onBarkly St, North Fitzroy, early on December 8.

The 69-year-old was looking after her two grandchildren at the time.

The windows on her car were smashed and more than $40,000 of jewellery displayed at her pop-up event earlier that day was stolen.

“The moment I discovered the damage and the loss, it felt like a gut-punch,” Ms Berndt said.

But while executing an unrelated search warrant, police found some of the missing jewellery this weekend.

“Detectives from the Maribyrnong crime investigation unit conducted a search warrant­ at a storage unit in Braybrook on Saturday, December 13, where they located the stolen items,” police said.

$40,000 worth of jewellery was stolen from Lucy Berndt on December 8. Picture: Lucy Berndt

Unfortunately, Ms Berndt said, $14,000 worth of stock was still missing, including rings and watches.

She had been “heartbroken” after the thieves stole her main source of income.

Her small business, Ms Allure, sells jewellery, handbags and accessories at pop-up events across the Geelong area. The theft left her with “very limited” stock in the lead-up to her “busiest time of year”.

As her insurance did not cover that type of event, Ms Berndt’s daughters Lauren Komel and Sam Guiney set up an online fundraiser to help their mum recover financially.

“Her small business isn’t just about jewellery – it’s about spreading joy and supporting others,” they wrote on the GoFundMe page.

Ms Guiney described her mum as kind-hearted and someone who “loves the community”.

$40,000 worth of jewellery was stolen from Lucy Berndt on December 8. Picture: Lucy Berndt

She said her mother had been “put under so much stress” due to the significant stock loss and damage to her car. The GoFundMepage, which raised $5767, was stopped when Ms Berndt was told police had found some of her stolen items.

Ms Guiney said the stolen jewellery was unique and would be “easy to on-sell”.

Police said no one had been arrested in relation to the jewellery theft at this stage and the investigation was ongoing.

Anyone with information or dashcam/CCTV footage related to the theft is urged

to call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

Originally published as Geelong grandmother’s stolen jewellery recovered by police in Footscray storage locker