Masked thieves nab handfuls of jewelry in evening burglary at Bluffton’s Tanger Outlets
Wearing ski masks and gloves, three suspects executed a speedy “smash-and-grab” inside Bluffton’s Kay Jewelers during its evening hours last week, running off with handfuls of shiny loot from a freshly shattered display case.
An employee of the Tanger Outlets store was standing about 10 feet away during the burglary, which remained unsolved as of Tuesday. The exact value of the stolen jewelry was unknown.
The incident follows last month’s theft of about 1,600 sunglasses at the nearby Tanger II Outlets, resulting in an estimated loss of $1 million.
A representative from the Kay Jewelers outlet did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent Tuesday afternoon.
Bystanders describe the ‘smash-and-grab’
Witnesses called the police around 6:25 p.m. Wednesday, saying the three masked burglars had just run out of the Kay Jewelers store toward Bluffton Parkway. Before going into the store, one Beaufort County deputy patrolled the surrounding parking lots but did not spot any fleeing suspects.
The store’s front jewelry case was smashed, with merchandise “strewn throughout the front of the store,” according to a sheriff’s office incident report. Officers noted a small hole in a second case where the thieves had tried to gain access, but it appeared too small to reach inside.
Security footage showed the three suspects entering the store sporting hoodies, one carrying a red pipe wrench that he used to shatter the glass of the front jewelry counter.
The other two thieves grabbed pieces of jewelry from the broken display case while the suspect with the pipe smashed a small hole in the second case, which was too small to gain access to more merchandise.
The group of masked suspects then ran out of the store, heading south “in the direction of Bluffton Parkway,” the report says.
One employee of the store, a 52-year-old Bluffton woman, was standing behind the front display case when the thieves rushed in. She was unable to stop the burglary “due to the design of the counter” blocking her from the suspects, she told police.
Because of their ski masks, Beaufort County investigators were unable to identify the suspects through surveillance footage, according to the incident report.
Deputies found traces of “human tissue and blood” near the hole that had been smashed in the second jewelry case, likely left behind while the burglars attempted to stick their hands through the broken glass. A DNA swab was taken and submitted to evidence.
Employees at Kay Jewelers told police they would not know exactly what was taken until they completed an inventory check. Details on the stolen items were not available to sheriff’s office personnel as of Tuesday afternoon, according to department spokesperson Master Sgt. Danny Allen.
No arrests had been made in the burglary as of Tuesday.
This story was originally published February 4, 2025 at 4:55 PM.
