MEMPHIS, TN -
(WMC-TV) – Three men from Houston, Texas are under arrest for the January smash and grab at Wolfchase Mall that scared shoppers and closed Reeds Jewelers for several days.
Dalton Francis, Andrew Penrice, and Chadwick Bailey are in the custody of Houston Police Department.
Police say warrants were issued for two more suspects, 34-year-old Rodrick Walker and 26-year-old Maurice Williams. One suspect is believed to be from Houston and the other, from California.
At the news conference, Memphis Police Department said it is working with Houston Police Department. According to police, it is possible the suspects may be responsible for similar heists in other areas.
"The little information that they had, we just had to work hard and build on it and that led us to Houston," said Anthony Berryhill, Memphis Police Department. "And they just kept digging and kept digging until we got positive results."
At 7:43 p.m. on Saturday, January 18, MPD was called to Reeds Jewelers after a group of men smashed open a glass display counter, stole 65 Rolex watches, and took off.
MPD said during the press conference that the original estimate had the stolen watches valued at $715,000, but the official value of the stolen watches is listed at $537,000.
According to video surveillance from the mall security system, five men were seen running out of the mall at dock four. Three of them got into a gray minivan, while the other two got into a red sedan and fled the scene.
Police also have a sixth person of interest, but have not named that person nor have they gotten a warrant.
Investigators do not know if the men have any connections to Memphis, but at least half of the crew will return to the Bluff City pending extradition proceedings.
"Hopefully we'll have these suspects back here in Memphis sooner rather than later but I don't have an exact time table right now," said Paul Hagerman, Shelby County District Attorney's Office.
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