PERTH AMBOY, New Jersey (WABC) — A family is picking up the pieces and assessing the damage after their jewelry store was robbed in Perth Amboy, New Jersey.
NewsCopter 7 was over the scene at SD Jewelry on Madison Avenue on Wednesday, where authorities say the wild incident played out.
Robbers were caught on camera smashing the front window of the shop and were seen carrying garbage bags full of jewelry as they escaped.
Screams could be heard from the mother and daughter who own the store in video obtained by Eyewitness News.
Jessie Sanchez is a close friend who owns a salon across the street.
As the robbers tried to make it into their getaway car, there was one thing they did not account for; they weren’t getting away without a fight.
“She fought with them like a man,” Sanchez said. “She’s a brave woman. Stephanie is a brave woman, but I feel so sad for her mother. Her mother fell away. She fell. It was too much.”
The mother suffered bruises to her arm and leg.
The two fearless women tried to pull the robbers out of the getaway BMW as they hit reverse, sideswiping a parked car. The mother and daughter kept hanging on even as the robbers peeled off, leaving the mother on the ground.
Other business owners tried to do whatever they could to help. Someone even kicked the moving vehicle.
“One of my workers, she got out from here and then she tried to stop the car and then I was behind her trying to grab her but there is a point that you get so nervous, you get so frustrated that you turn back you know. Because you don’t know if those people have guns,” Sanchez said.
The robbers were as bold as they come. Not only did they hit SD Jewelry in broad daylight, but they did it right under the cops’ noses. There is a police substation right across the street.
Detectives began their investigation into the afternoon smash and grab that targeted a family run business, leaving a whole neighborhood rattled.
A mother and daughter put their lives on the line trying to protect their livelihood. The family has no insurance as they said they could not afford the rates. They are now hoping the businesses who provide them with the jewels and gold can help.
Officials say officers pursued the vehicle out of town, but multiple suspects remain on the loose.
They say no weapons were pulled out, and no one was seriously injured. It’s unclear what the suspects got away with.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the Perth Amboy Police Department at 732-324-3800.
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