A globetrotting jewelry thief, Yaorong Wan, 49, has been apprehended in Manhattan, New York City, following a series of high-profile heists at renowned jewelry stores across the globe. Wan’s criminal activities spanned multiple countries, including the United States, South Korea, and the United Kingdom. The suspect, who was already under a red notice from Interpol, is believed to have targeted luxury establishments such as Cartier and Tiffany, leaving a trail of stolen rings and watches in his wake.
Wan’s recent arrest came after he allegedly stole diamond rings worth nearly $300,000 from Cartier and Tiffany stores in New York City. Prior to this, he had successfully executed a theft at a London Jewelers in Manhasset, Long Island, where he made off with an $18,000 watch. Law enforcement sources and the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office have also linked Wan to similar heists at a Tiffany’s store in South Korea, an Hermes store in New Jersey, and Cartier stores in Beverly Hills, California, and Miami, Florida.
The NYPD’s Major Case Squad tracked Wan to a Queens apartment building on 40th Road, leading to his arrest on two counts of grand larceny related to the Manhattan thefts. This arrest marks the end of Wan’s years-long criminal spree, which took him across continents and resulted in the accumulation of stolen rings and watches.
Wan’s crime spree appears to have commenced in September 2018 when he targeted a Tiffany’s store in Seoul, South Korea, stealing a diamond ring valued at $330,000. After a hiatus, he arrived in the United States in December and swiftly resumed his illicit activities, targeting stores nationwide. In January, he allegedly stole a $48,000 diamond ring and a $10,000 watch from a Cartier store in Beverly Hills. Subsequently, Wan arrived in New York City, where he targeted the Tiffany & Co store in Rockefeller Center on March 4 and the Cartier store at 20 Hudson Yards on March 12.
During the theft at Tiffany’s, Wan engaged an employee in conversation about various pieces of jewelry before settling on a diamond ring valued at $255,000. However, when the ring was later examined, it was discovered to be a counterfeit cubic zirconia stone mounted on 18-carat white gold. Surveillance footage revealed Wan’s sleight-of-hand trickery, as he swapped the genuine ring with the fake one. A similar incident occurred at the Cartier store in Hudson Yards, where Wan allegedly pocketed a diamond ring worth approximately $25,000.
Wan’s crime spree continued in Miami, where he allegedly stole a $16,000 watch from a Cartier store on March 24. He then returned to the New York metropolitan area, pilfering a glitzy watch from Manhasset on April 19 and two watches worth a combined $17,000 from the Hermes store inside the American Dream Mall in East Rutherford on April 26.
Upon his arrest, Wan was found in possession of three stolen watches, as well as the counterfeit stones he used to replace the genuine ones. He pleaded not guilty during his arraignment in Manhattan Criminal Court and was released on supervised release. However, he was subsequently transferred to Nassau County, where he faces a $500,000 cash bail for the watch theft and an outstanding warrant from East Rutherford, New Jersey.