A group of four thieves crashed a vehicle into a jewelry store in La Verne, California, before taking off with hundreds of thousands of dollars in merchandise — and it was all caught on a surveillance camera. 

The smash-and-grab occurred around noon on Saturday, when the thieves slammed a white car through Rodeo Jewelers’ front glass window. After driving into the business, four men jumped out of the automobile and began smashing display cases and stuffing jewelry into bags. Police said the thieves stole around $300,000 worth of jewelry, ABC 7 reported. The store is located in a busy strip mall about 30 miles east of Los Angeles.

The video shows one of the thieves attacking the store owner with a chair before the owner and another worker appear to run out of the building. The thieves climbed over the roof of the vehicle they drove into the store to escape. They proceeded to get into a black Nissan Altima parked nearby before driving away. The store’s owner said he required seven stitches after being attacked.

WATCH: 

“It tends me to believe that there’s been other crimes committed that maybe aren’t exactly like this, but they’ve sort of tested tactics,” said La Verne Police Department Lt. Cory Leeper. “They are getting more and more brazen.”

George Gascon — the district attorney in Los Angeles County, where La Verne is located — has been heavily criticized for his soft-on-crime policies putting residents at risk, and has survived two attempts to recall him from his elected position.

A few days before the raid on the jewelry store in La Verne, three men wearing ski masks and holding hammers smashed their way into jewelry cases at another store just a few miles away, according to ABC 7. Investigators are still trying to determine if the two smash-and-grabs are connected, and the La Verne Police Department is asking anyone with more information about the robberies to contact them. 

CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILY WIRE APP

In 2015, then-17-year-old Rudolph “Rudy” Farias was reported missing by his mother after he took his dogs for a walk and never returned. On June 29, 2023, Farias was found sleeping in front of a church and returned to his family.

But neighbors of the Houston man say they never knew Farias was missing, and insisted that he had been living with his mother the entire time and hanging out around the neighborhood.

“He used to come in my garage, chill with my cousin, son, and daughter,” neighbor Kisha Ross told ABC 13. “That boy has never been missing.”

Ross’ cousin, Broderick Conley, told the outlet that he and Farias would regularly hang out, “laughing” and having “good times.”

Ross also told the outlet that sometimes Farias “would go to the park by himself.”

They also said they knew Farias as Dolph and not Rudy. They noted that they had not seen him in the past few weeks.

Another neighbor, who wanted to remain anonymous, told ABC that Farias had been living at his mother’s home for years.

“I was just shocked someone over here was missing, and we see him,” the neighbor said. “It’s shocking to everyone.”

ABC 13 reporter Brooke Taylor spoke to Farias’ mother, Janie Santa, on Tuesday. Santa refused to go on camera but told the reporter that her neighbors had mistaken her son for her nephew, and provided a picture. The neighbors, however, said the photo did not match the man who had been spending time with him and are wondering why Santa has claimed Farias was missing.

“I do not know. That’s what I have been trying to figure out all day,” Ross told the outlet. “I am confused right now. I am like, ‘What’s going on?'”

Investigators have not spoken to Farias yet, but are expected to do so on Wednesday.

Texas Equusearch founder Tim Miller, who helped look for Farias, told KHOU 11 there were “a lot more questions than answers” in Farias’ disappearance, referring to initial claims that no one knew where he was for the past eight years.

Farias was found sleeping outside a church on June 29. A good Samaritan contacted authorities, who were able to connect Farias with his family because he had something on him that identified a family member, KHOU reported.

Santa, Farias’ mother, released a statement Monday regarding her son:

We want to thank the media and public for all their support. My son Rudy Farias IV was found on Thursday, June 29th, after being missing for 8 years. Currently, we do not have any additional information on Rudy’s case. What we do know is at the time of his recovery, a good Samaritan located him unresponsive and immediately called police and 911. My son Rudy is receiving the care he needs to overcome his trauma, but at this time, he is nonverbal and not able to communicate with us. We are asking for privacy during this difficult time but will share more details as Rudy continues to heal.

Another twist in the case came when it was discovered that in 2018 — three years after Farias allegedly went missing — family members called police to say that Farias was living behind a relative’s home. When police searched the area, they didn’t find Farias.

Farias was found just 25 minutes from where he allegedly disappeared.