Two men are behind bars for a jewelry heist in Cumming which may turn out to be one of the largest in Georgia history. Now authorities are looking to see if this is part of a larger crime network.
Thieves stole almost more than $2.8 million worth of jewelry from Milano's Fine Jewelry Store. Now, 32-year-old Kenardis Demaine Holloway of Smyrna and 26-year-old Carl Henry Bowser of Atlanta are under arrest for the heist.
Forsyth County Sheriff Ted Paxton says their Warrant Unit located and arrested Bowser at a residence in southwest Atlanta around 3:00 p.m. Tuesday. Working into the evening, officers then located Holloway at 3:00 a.m. Wednesday at an extended stay hotel in Stockbridge.
Both men were arrested without incident. They are charged with burglary and theft by receiving stolen property.
``We have strong physical evidence to lead us to feel confident there were more than these two individuals involved,'' Paxton said.
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The thieves had to bypass the store's security system and then cut their way from an empty building next door, through walls of solid concrete and into the jewelry safe early Sunday morning. Police say it must have taken hours.
The burglary was "planned and executed by professionals," said Lt. Col. Gene Moss.
Store owner Ibrahim Ehicam said thieves emptied the store's display cases and stole the cash register. He said a few rings were found near a fence behind the building.
"They took everything, even the last one cent, even the cash register.” Ehicam tells Channel 2 Action News. ” They look like professionals."
Ehicam says his insurance won't even cover half of the massive loss.
Sheriff's Captain Tim House tells WSB some of the stolen jewelry has been recovered, but he is not detailing which items or how much.
Paxton said he believes more people are involved in the thefts. ``We are working still a tremendous number of active leads,'' he said.
Anyone with information about the case should call the Forsyth County Sheriff's Office or 911.