Investigators believe the robber, who first attempted to access the building through a neighboring business before smashing through the glass front door, may have set the fire to cover up evidence of the theft. The exact cause of the fire was still under investigation Tuesday.
Owner Scott Stevens said he wasn’t even aware that a robbery had occurred when he got called to the store at 6:15 a.m. and found smoke pouring from the windows.
“It wasn’t until the fire department invited me into my store and asked if anything was missing that I noticed all the cases were empty,” he said.
The stolen inventory was worth between $10,000 and $20,000, Stevens said.
It wasn’t the first time that someone has attempted a break-in at the store and Stevens said he was lucky the robber couldn’t access the safe.
“They put a lot of effort to get into the building for what they got, because everything of great value is in the safe,” he said.
Despite the high-priced items being spared, Stevens said it will be a while before he is able to reopen, even in another location, because his inventory is so depleted.
Stevens’ father bought the store in 1958 from the original owner and kept the name because it was well-known around Bellefontaine.
The other affected businesses were operational after several hours of airing out. The adjacent law firm, which owner Doug Minnich said was close to opening, suffered damage to a door and wall where the burglar initially tried to enter the jewelry store.
“It’s just more money you have to spend cleaning the mess up. We were real close to moving in,” Minnich said.
Both he and Stevens agreed the fire was senseless.
“I don’t know why he had to set the place on fire,” Minnich said. “If he wanted to steal something, I don’t think he had to set it on fire.”
“It’s just a really senseless act of violence,” Stevens said.
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