Lafayette police searching for suspects in Saturday robbery
Lafayette consignment store robbed
Consignment store owners in the East Bay tell KTVU they are beefing up their security measures after a string of robberies and burglaries hit consignment stores over the past year. KTVU's Tori Gaines reports from Orinda.
LAFAYETTE, Calif. - Police in Lafayette are searching for several people suspected of pepper spraying employees and customers during a robbery on Saturday afternoon.
Officers were sent to Divine Consign Lafayette, located in the 1000 block of Oak Hill Road at 1:40 p.m. on Saturday afternoon, and found that multiple people had been pepper sprayed.
The thieves reportedly used a sledgehammer to smash a display case, then fled after taking what was inside, police reported.
Police declined to state what was taken, or the extent of the victims' injuries.
It's unclear how many suspects are being sought in connection to the crime.
This is the latest in a series of consignment store robberies in the East Bay suburbs. The owner of the Home Consignment Center in Danville told KTVU that his business has lost nearly $4 million in jewelry to robberies and burglaries. He's working with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to investigate the crimes — similar robberies have been reported in communities between the Bay Area and southern California.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the Lafayette Police Department at (925)-283-3680, or email tips to 94549tip@gmail.com.