GLOVERSVILLE - City police are investigating reports of a stolen one-carat diamond valued at $8,000 from Castiglione Jewelers on North Main Street.
Police released still photos taken from surveillance equipment of a man and woman who are believed to have swapped out the diamond for a cubic zirconia, a synthetic stone that looks like a diamond.
Capt. Donald VanDeusen said the man and woman came into Castiglione Jewelers about 1:30 p.m. Jan. 17 and spent two hours there.
"They were looking at jewelry, loose diamonds and pretty much setting the stage for what they were going to do," VanDeusen said.
At one point, the woman told the man she was going to get something to eat and left the store, VanDeusen said. At that point, the man reportedly told the sales associate he wanted to buy a loose diamond as a surprise gift for the woman while she was out of the store, VanDeusen said.
"He indicated he needed to go to the ATM and get money, and he never came back," VanDeusen said.
VanDeusen said the sales associate turned around for a matter of seconds to retrieve a calculator, and that was likely when the switch was made.
"It only takes a second in that business to make the switch," VanDeusen said.
A couple days later, a sales associate tried to show the diamonds to other customers, and the staff noticed the diamond was a fake.
VanDeusen said the woman probably is in her late 20s to early 30s, about 5 feet 2 inches to 5 feet 5 inches tall and probably weighs around 115 pounds.
The male is about 6 feet tall and probably weighs around 250 pounds, police said.
Anyone with information should contact Detective Joseph Kadle at 773-4502. All information given to police will be treated as confidential.
"From what we're looking at, I don't believe these are locals," VanDeusen said. "These guys could very well be part of a series of people who go around and do this. I wouldn't be surprised to find these two people have done this in other areas and other states."
Law enforcement agencies have systems of sharing information -such as the photos and description of the incident - regularly with other departments across the state.
"We're hoping other agencies in the state might have something similar," VanDeusen said.
