- A London home was targeted in a $13M jewelry heist. MailOnline says the owner is a rich influencer.
- The victims are offering a large reward for people who help get the jewels back.
- $1.3M is for information leading to their return, and $627K more for helping secure a conviction.
The victims of a $13 million jewelry heist in a wealthy London neighborhood are offering a hefty reward.
More than a million dollars is pledged to people who can give information leading to the jewels’ return and the thieves’ conviction.
London’s Metropolitan Police said in a news release on Monday that jewelry worth £10.4 million (around $13 million) was stolen on December 7 from the Primrose Hill neighborhood.
Among the stolen items were a 10.73-carat Graff diamond ring, two De Beers butterfly diamond rings, and other luxury items from Van Cleef & Arpels, Chopard, and Hermes, according to police.
Some $190,000 worth of Hermès Crocodile Kelly handbags were also taken, as was £15,000 in cash, police said.
The targeted property is on Avenue Road, which has some of the most expensive properties in London including the residences of the ambassadors from Sri Lanka and Israel.
MailOnline identified the home as belonging to Shafira Huang, a wealthy socialite and Instagram influencer with some 13,000 followers. Huang’s profile was private as of Tuesday.
Images provided by the Met of stolen items included a bespoke diamond bangle with the name “Shafira” on it.
Business Insider was unable to reach Huang for comment. The Met, in an email to Business Insider, declined to comment on the identity of the victim.
The Met confirmed that the victims are offering two separate rewards.
Those who provide information that leads to the retrieval of the stolen jewelry would receive 10% of the recovered items’ valuation, amounting to a potential total of a little over $1.3 million.
In addition to this, the Met said the victims are offering an additional reward of £500,000 (about $627,000) to anyone who provides information leading to the arrest and conviction of the suspect.
In total, there’s about $1,927,000 up for grabs.
The police gave a description of a suspect: a white man in his late 20s or early 30s, of medium build. They said he covered his face during a break-in.
Paulo Roberts, an officer in the investigation, described it as a “brazen” offense that “violated the sanctuary of the victims’ home.”
In a statement, he said: “The suspect has stolen £10.4m worth of jewelry, much of which is sentimental and unique in its design, and therefore easily identifiable.”
Luxury theft is a growing problem in London, which has the sixth highest number of billionaires of any city in the world.
According to a review of police data by the criminal defense law firm Lawtons, the number of luxury thefts in the city rose by 22% between February 2023 and February 2024.