Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
$6 Million NYE Jewelry Heist: Thieves Targeted Midtown Business Just Before Midnight
By
Jen Chung
Published Jan 3, 2017
Modified Jan 3, 2017
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Jen Chung
Published Jan 3, 2017
Modified Jan 3, 2017
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
A midtown jewelry wholesaler was hit by burglars over the New Year's Eve weekend—and it's believed the suspects deliberately struck because police would be focused on Times Square. A source told the Post, "They laid in wait until the ball dropped."
The burglary occurred at KGK Holdings, located at 70 West 36th Street. Police sources told NBC New York the burglars hid out inside the building for hours leading up to midnight, entering through a freight entrance.
Two of the three male suspects can been seen on surveillance video using a pry bar and hammer to enter the business—one even looks up at the camera—and police say they stole jewelry valued at approximately $6,000,000 from two safes. No one was injured, and they fled via the stairs.
Sources tell the NY Post that the safes were either already open or had combinations known to the suspects, who wore gloves to remove "diamond-encrusted and 18 karat gold bracelets, earrings and necklaces... The footage shows one of the suspects talking on a cell phone while he is opening the safe, perhaps receiving the combination from a fourth person."
A building worker said, "It’s weird to me that they randomly tried that floor in this building. How would somebody know to come here? That’s real fishy... It definitely seems like an inside job."
KGK Holdings owns high-end jewelry brand Gregg Ruth, whose website says it specializes in "Fancy Color Diamonds and Important Colored Stones" and "quickly became known as an industry leader in Yellow and Pink Diamond center stone pieces and helped to popularize these rare Diamonds... A Gregg Ruth colored stone piece, whether it be a pendant valued at $1,000.00 or a necklace valued at $150,000.00 is instantly recognizable by its bright and highly saturated gemstones."
Anyone with information in regards to this incident is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime stoppers website at WWW.NYPDCRIMESTOPPERS.COM or by texting their tips to 274637 (CRIMES) then enter TIP577. All calls are strictly confidential.
Tagged
burglary
jewelry heist
kgk holdings
midtown
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
In East Brooklyn, aging NYCHA homes get a $636M upgrade
The improvements to at the Reid & Park Rock developments come has the agency wrestles with a multibillion-dollar backlog in needed repairs.
By
Willow Higgins
Published Oct 26, 2026 at 6:30 a.m. ET
What NYers can expect as open enrollment for health insurance begins
Some consumers will face higher prices partly brought on by federal spending cuts.
By
Caroline Lewis
News
What NYers can expect as open enrollment for health insurance begins
Some consumers will face higher prices partly brought on by federal spending cuts.
By
Caroline Lewis
Why New Yorkers should care about bats beyond spooky season
By
Catalina Gonella
Serbians forced to wait hours to vote at NYC consulate as Balkan nation holds election
By
Jill Webb
and
Michael Sol Warren
Retired NYPD detective charged in George Washington Bridge killing out on $1M bail
By
Michael Sol Warren
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .