Oakwood and Kettering police have reported an increase in burglaries in recent months where jewelry was the target.
“Many jewelry stores are aggressively advertising that they buy gold and silver and pay top dollar,” Oakwood police wrote in a monthly crime report to the city manager.
“This practice is, in many cases, an enticement to thieves looking to offload their loot and avoid pawn shops,” the report found.
That’s because experienced thieves have learned that licensed pawnbrokers are required to check ID, report all incoming property to police daily, and hold new items 15 days.
Oakwood Capt. Randy Baldridge said none of the jewelry reported stolen in a rash of break-ins during the Thanksgiving weekend has shown up in pawn shops, which leads to speculation the items have been sold to gold buyers and melted already, destroying evidence.
“We have contacted some of the jewelry stores and asked them to keep an eye out for certain items,” Baldridge said, but so far they’ve received no calls.
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