Safe left near freeway off-ramp after predawn Oakland jewelry-store burglary

OAKLAND, Calif. - Thieves used a chain attached to a van to drag out a large safe from an Oakland jewelry store early Thursday but ended up leaving the safe behind as police closed in.

It all happened at about 3:45 a.m. at Grand Jewelry Repair on Grand Avenue. A man and a woman used a crowbar to break into the shop as others waited outside. They tried twice to remove a large safe in the back of the shop, said Christopher Tran, son of the owners. 

"The first time they did it, they used a rope and it snapped. So the next time they came back it was a heavy chain," Tran said.

Surveillance video shows the burglars wrapping a long chain around the safe and yanking it out of the store. The safe ended up being dragged on Grand Avenue, knocking over garbage cans.

The thieves, with help from others in a Dodge Challenger, used a winch to lift one end of the safe onto the van. But the other end was still on the ground, creating sparks.

Two Oakland police officers are seen immediately going after the van as it got onto westbound I-580, but the intruders got away - empty-handed.

That's because the safe apparently got dislodged or fell from the van and ended up lying in the middle of Harrison Street and MacArthur Boulevard off-ramp from I-580.

Inside the box, about $300,000 in jewelry and watches, all safe. But the safe itself? A damaged mess.

"As they're driving away, it was still dragging, so when we saw the safe, the bottom was kind of rubbed out, because it was dragging onto the street," Tran said.

A tow truck had to be called to remove the safe, which is now at an undisclosed location.

"We're extremely happy that they dropped it," Tran said.

The store is now in disarray and covered in debris and shattered glass because of the path the safe took through the store. The intruders even left their crowbar behind. 

This is the second major break-in at the store since 2020.

"It's just sad, right? And in addition to that you can be angry too, but really I'm more sad for my parents because they're immigrants, they came over here during the Vietnam War."

Insurance will cover the damage, but Tran said the burglary could force his parents to retire early, after 34 years of running the store.

Henry Lee is a KTVU crime reporter. E-mail Henry at Henry.Lee@fox.com and follow him on Twitter @henrykleeKTVU and www.facebook.com/henrykleefan