As crime runs rampant in the Bay Area, an Oakland, California, jewelry store that has been in business for 40 years was robbed of 85-90% of its inventory when eight thieves brandishing weapons and accompanied by two getaway cars hit the store Wednesday afternoon.
The Trinh family, which owns Phuong Jewelry in Oakland’s Chinatown Wednesday, had let their business insurance lapse because premiums had risen. Video showed the eight thieves shattering every case as they ravaged the store.
Diane Trinh, 69, hid and yelled for help as no security guard was on duty; her 76-year-old husband burst in with a firearm, prompting the thieves to flee.
“If he hadn’t done that they would have kept going,” the Trinhs’ son Tony, the executive director of the Oakland Chinatown Improvement Council, said. “We’ve been robbed a few times before but not at this level of brazen magnitude. Eight individuals and two getaway cars and guns drawn. I thought, did my mother get shot? Did my father get shot? Did any of our staff of community members?”
“My mom was devastated and my dad was broken,” Tony said. “It’s rough, my mom is the leader of the pack — when she suffers I suffer the same thing from her.”
Yet Tony steadfastly believes the neighborhood can improve. “I’ve seen tremendous progress even though it doesn’t feel like that. In terms of cleaning and safety, there are a lot more out there ambassadors – we have walking officers – during the pandemic we didn’t,” he said. “We can’t let our fear overcome! The only way to reduce crime is to have more traffic, events, people to get more resources. A strong Oakland Chinatown is strong for every community in Oakland.”
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8 armed suspects ransacked the legacy Oakland Chinatown business Phuong Jewelry yesterday at around 12:30.
The family tells me, in less than one minute 85-90% of their inventory was taken.
Watch as owner Diane runs to the back & gets her year old husband. He storms out with a… pic.twitter.com/pvsiiUeoiz
— Dion Lim (@DionLimTV) April 12, 2024
The Oakland Chinatown Improvement Council initiated a GoFundMe site to help the Trinh family.
Violent crime and other felonies rose in Oakland last year; robberies increased 38%; burglaries increased 23%. “15,000 cars were reported stolen last year — the highest number in the city in at least 15 years,” the San Francisco Chronicle reported. In San Francisco, robberies and motor vehicle theft increased in 2023.