Long Beach Trio Accused of Taking $25,000+ Jewelry from Cerritos Home

Three Long Beach men are facing charges Monday in connection with breaking into a Cerritos home earlier this month and attempting to steal more than $25,000 in jewelry. 

The events leading up to the trio's arrests began at about 11:15 a.m. on Nov. 7 when Long Beach police detectives in an unmarked car began following a gray 4-door BMW, occupied by the three suspects -- all Asian men. The suspect vehicle was traveling northbound on the San Gabriel River (605) Freeway, and exited on the Del Amo Boulevard off-ramp in Cerritos before entering the residential neighborhood at Mapes Avenue and Gridley Road, according to Lt. Jeff Deedrick of the Cerritos Sheriff's Station. 

While parked in the 20100 block of Gridley Road, the detectives observed one of the suspects knocking on the front door of a home and when no one answered, he jumped into the backyard, made entry into the home and opened the front door for the other two, Deedrick said. 

A few minutes later, the trio exited the residence with an 8x11 wooden jewelry box containing several pieces of jewelry. They tried to drive off but crashed into the unmarked police car, prompting the three to bail on foot.  

Long Beach police apprehended suspects Peter You, 26, John Roeung, 24, and Jerry Chim, 24, a short distance away and took them into custody, the lieutenant added. 

All of the stolen jewelry was recovered and returned to the victim, including a Patek Philippe watch worth $15,000, a Piaget watch worth $8,000 along with several necklaces, pendants, chains and rings. In total the jewelry was valued at $26,662, according to police.

2012 LASD Stats: Cerritos Continues to Be a Target for Property Crimes

According to Cerritos Sheriff's Station data, there have been 214 residential break-ins in the city through Nov. 5, 2012 -- a 20.90 percent increase in residential burglaries compared to the same time period last year. As Cerritos continues to be a target for property crime, sheriff's station authorities remind residents of the importance of being proactive and alert citizens.

"We need everyone to call the station if they see any suspicious behavior, so we can send someone out to investigate," said Deedrick. 

Residents are urged to observe the activities in their neighborhood and report any suspicious activity, vehicle, person or strange noise to the Cerritos Sheriff's Station by calling (562) 860-0044. To report an emergency or a crime in progress, residents should call 911.

Additional crime prevention tips are available on the City’s Safer Cerritos website at safercerritos.com.