A dropped cellphone and boastful Instagram posts led investigators straight to the thieves behind a brazen $2.7 million jewelry heist in Beverly Hills, resulting in an 80-month federal prison sentence for one of the axe-wielding robbers.
Jimmy Lee Vernon III, 33, was part of a crew that stormed Luxury Jewels of Beverly Hills in March 2022, smashing display cases in broad daylight and snatching dozens of luxury pieces. The haul included 19 bracelets, eight rings, 20 watches, and other high-end items—none of which has been recovered. But Vernon made a crucial mistake: his cellphone slipped from his sweatpants during the robbery.
The investigation unraveled quickly after that. As reported by Courthouse News Service, surveillance footage revealed the crew had cased the area in three vehicles — a stolen Kia, an Audi, and a rented Ford Mustang. When one of Vernon's accomplices couldn't resist bragging on Instagram, posting photos of cash stacks and a note from the "robbery gang," investigators tracked the crew to Long Beach, California.
"The offense was undoubtedly horrifying," Vernon's attorney old the court, "But it was also the culmination of Vernon's similarly horrifying childhood." Court documents revealed a devastating history: a meth-addicted mother, a father who ran a crack house and beat his children, and a legally blind grandmother who dosed the kids with cough syrup to make them sleep—leading to Vernon's drug addiction at age eight.
"This defendant took part in a blatant assault on a store operating in daylight hours, believing he could rob and intimidate others with impunity," U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada said at sentencing. Along with prison time, Vernon must pay $2,674,600 in restitution for what prosecutors called one of the boldest smash-and-grab robberies in the district's history.
Previously:
• Excellent 1970 jewel heist novel: The Hot Rock
• Well-planned bank heist fails
• 'The Heist' pokes fun at big-budget Hollywood capers
