San Ramon: 7 arrested in jewelry store robbery, but police are looking for at least 13 others

SAN RAMON Police have identified six men and juvenile arrested who allegedly joined a large group that stormed into a San Ramon jewelry store selected carrying guns and smashed cases grabbed merchandise and fled in multiple getaway cars Arrested in relation to the Monday robbery of Heller Jewelers were Michael Ray Jimmy Ray Ira Austin Jahkeal McGolthin Jacques Samuel DeAndre Demisse and a -year-old male juvenile all from Oakland The Contra Costa District Attorney s Office had not charged them as of Thursday morning Police are still looking for more individuals At least masked robbers took part in the smash-and-grab robbery at about p m Monday at the store located in the City Center Bishop Ranch shopping center Video of the robbery circulating online shows the masked people carrying what appears to be pick axes crow bars and tire irons At one point video appears to show the shop s front doors lock the robbers inside before one of them fires off several shots through the glass allowing the group to escape to getaway cars parked in the lot s valet area We re not sharing details about the store s defense to avoid compromising employee safety or revealing their guard measures police spokesperson Lt Leysy Pelayo mentioned in a announcement Thursday Based on video footage disclosed it appeared the subjects were unable to open the doors as they may have been locked just before one of the individuals shot through the glass door Pelayo did not say whether the individuals were in possession of any stolen property when they were arrested Police reportedly apprehended McGlothin Samuel and Demisse at the Dublin BART station Michael Ray Jimmy Ray Austin and the -year-old juvenile were arrested in Oakland Pelayo disclosed Police reportedly used drones and a helicopter to track and follow several persons throughout Contra Costa and Alameda counties after suspending a car chase out of concern for general safety Pelayo also declared police were waiting for the store to confirm the damages and inventory lost before reporting how much the robbers got away with A person who answered the door at the store declined to comment on Thursday This isn t the first time masked and armed intruders have robbed Heller Jewelers In federal prosecutors charged five people who were allegedly part of a larger group that robbed the same store in March that year making away with over pieces of jewelry with an estimated worth of million administrators revealed at the time The stolen inventory included a Rolex watch equipped with a tracking device which police declared helped aid in their capture Elsewhere in the Bay Area a group on Sept violently robbed Kim Hung Jewelry in San Jose s east side when more than a dozen masked assailants entered the store and shoved the elderly owner of the store to the ground Also a Milpitas jewelry store owner on Sept reportedly fired a gun at a group of individuals during an attempted smash-and-grab robbery causing the would-be robbers to flee before taking any merchandise according to police The rise in organized thefts has become a major talking point for advocates who are asking the state to step in to do more to prevent the violent encounters At a press conference Thursday in front of the San Ramon shopping center several advocates including Dublin Mayor Sherry Hu used Monday s robbery in San Ramon as a chance to call upon Gov Gavin Newsom and other prominent personnel throughout the state to step up and do something to prevent more organized robberies Hu explained in an interview that these types of organized crimes are not an easy thing to prevent though she urged state and county legislators to strengthen laws and stiffen penalties to combat smash-and-grab robberies We feel in Dublin we are doing a great job but it s hard for Dublin to act on our own Hu stated