This image provided by the Orlando Police Department shows an x-ray of what are believed to be two diamond earrings that were stolen from a Tiffany & Co. jewelry store in central Florida and were swallowed by the suspect. ( Orlando Police Department office via AP)
Share and Follow

A suspected thief gulped down two pairs of diamond earrings during his arrest on the side of a Florida Panhandle highway last week, detectives say, leaving them with the unenviable task of waiting to “collect” the Tiffany & Co. jewellery worth nearly $1200.

In the squad car, a state trooper heard the suspect say, “I should have thrown them out the window,” and at the Washington County jail he asked staff, “Am I going to be charged with what is in my stomach?” according to the arrest report.

The 32-year-old man from Texas is accused of two felonies for forcibly stealing the earrings from an upscale Orlando shopping centre last Wednesday.

This image provided by the Orlando Police Department shows an x-ray of what are believed to be two diamond earrings that were stolen from a Tiffany & Co. jewelry store in central Florida and were swallowed by the suspect. ( Orlando Police Department office via AP)
This image provided by the Orlando Police Department shows an x-ray of what are believed to be two diamond earrings that were stolen from a Tiffany & Co. jewelry store in central Florida and were swallowed by the suspect. ( Orlando Police Department office via AP) (AP)

An X-ray of his torso shows what the Orlando Police Department believed to be the diamond earrings — a white mass shining brightly against the grey backdrop of his digestive tract.

“These foreign objects are suspected to be the Tiffany & Co earrings taken in the robbery but will need to be collected … after they are passed,” the department’s arrest report said.

Orlando police spokeswoman Kaylee Bishop said on Wednesday she was checking with the lead detective on whether the earrings had been recovered yet.

The earrings’ status also wasn’t known to a deputy who answered the phone but wouldn’t give his name in the rural Panhandle county where the suspect was arrested near Chipley, Florida.

Handwriting on an order of commitment document filed on Monday said “outside medical,” suggesting he was at a medical facility.

During the theft, the man allegedly told Tiffany sales associates he was interested in purchasing diamond earrings and a diamond ring on behalf of an Orlando Magic basketball player.

Floods hit residents all too used to seeing city underwater

Sales associates escorted the man to a VIP room where he could view the jewellery. A short time later, he jumped out of his chair, grabbed the jewellery and tried to force his way out of the door.

One of the sales associates was injured trying to block him but managed to knock the diamond ring, valued at $927,000, out of his hands.

Detectives obtained the license plate of the suspect’s car through shopping mall security footage and believe he was driving back to Texas.

State troopers tracked the car from tag readers on the Florida Turnpike and Interstate 10 until he was pulled over for driving without rear lights in Washington County, almost 550 kilometers away, the Orlando police report said.

The suspect was charged with first-degree felony grand theft and robbery with a mask, a third-degree felony.

Court records showed no attorney for him, and he was listed as being in police custody in Orange County Florida, which is home to Orlando, as of Wednesday morning.

Share and Follow
You May Also Like
Lachlan Young, 23, faced the Victorian Supreme Court in Ballarat on Wednesday for the start of his murder trial.

Court hears Victorian man who killed his ex-girlfriend insists he is not a murderer

A man who killed his former girlfriend and then tried to stage…

Devastating Texas floods: Over 100 lives lost and 180 people still unaccounted for

Key Points Torrential rains struck a region of Texas last Friday, unleashing…
Saving seven lives as easy as ticking a box, organ donor advocates say

“Changing Lives: How Checking a Box Can Save Seven People”

When Oren Klemich lost his teenage son to Meningococcal 16 years ago,…

Stage 5 of Tour de France: Pogacar downplays yellow jersey while Evenepoel triumphs in time trial.

Three-time Tour de France winner Tadej Pogacar played down the importance of…
Police allege he then took 53 right-footed shoes only, not pairs, before putting them in his trolley and leaving the centre.

Detectives puzzled by man who stole 53 right shoes from store

A man allegedly stole 53 right shoes from a business in Queensland,…

Erin Patterson convicted on all counts in mushroom murder case

Erin Patterson has been found guilty of murdering three of her estranged…
Australian Federal Police stock

Passenger Charged for Inappropriately Touching Sleeping Woman on Flight

A man has been charged after allegedly indecently assaulting a female passenger…
The exhibition has been five years in the making, and Tate Modern is anticipating more than 200,000 visitors during its six-month run.

Famous Art Pieces by Indigenous Artist Showcased at Prestigious London Gallery

A major solo exhibition of works by renowned Aboriginal Australian artist Emily…