ORLANDO, Fla. – Orlando police on Friday shared new photos of “recovered” luxury jewelry that investigators say a Texas man stole from Tiffany & Co. in Orlando and swallowed during a traffic stop in the Florida Panhandle.
The incident unfolded Feb. 26 at the Mall at Millenia store, where police say Jaythan Gilder, 32, posed as an assistant for an NBA player and made off with a high-stakes robbery.
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Police say Gilder selected high-end jewelry, including a $575,000 ring and approximately $780,000 worth of earrings, and lured employees into a VIP room.
After he fled the scene, law enforcement quickly tracked his vehicle to Washington County. Officers discovered he had switched license plates, prompting a notification to the Florida Highway Patrol.
During the traffic stop, troopers noticed the suspect attempting to swallow items in his mouth, officials said. Despite their efforts to prevent it, he managed to ingest the items, which were later identified as the stolen earrings during a body scan at the Washington County Jail, police said.
Inside the vehicle, investigators found a backing from one of the earrings, imprinted with the Tiffany & Co. logo, which helped confirm the jewelry’s origin.
In the squad car, a state trooper heard the suspect say, “I should have thrown them out the window,” and at the Washington County jail he asked staff, “Am I going to be charged with what is in my stomach?” according to the arrest report.
After the suspect “expelled” the diamonds “from his system,” they were returned to Tiffany’s for cleaning and verification, police said. The store’s master jeweler confirmed that the diamonds matched the serial numbers of those stolen earlier.
Detectives handling the case praised their team’s dedication and teamwork throughout the investigation.
“We acted quickly, diligently. We worked together tirelessly for days on end, taking different shifts at the hospital, leaving our families, just so we can get this case settled and Tiffany’s back their property,” said Det. Tiffany Perez of the Orlando Police Department.
Gilder was charged with robbery with a mask and grand theft in the first-degree involving stolen goods valued at $100,000 or more.