Texas News – Thief who swallowed $769K stolen jewellery arrested after two weeks, items recovered

A Texas man allegedly swiped hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of jewellery from a store in Florida, then swallowed it to conceal the jewelry. It took police almost two weeks to recover the stolen jewellery.

Jaythan Gilder, 32, went into a Tiffany & Co. store on February 26, 2025. He informed employees that he was representing a professional basketball player and was brokering a sale of high-end jewellery.

Dressed in a red Polo shirt, torn jeans, and a red hat, Gilder entered the store’s VIP area to examine high-end items, including two sets of diamond earrings and a diamond ring. The jewel was worth $160,000, $609,500, and $587,000.

As he was in the VIP room, Gilder took the jewel and attempted to flee. When he fought with an employee of the store, the diamond ring fell, but the earrings were retained by him. He forced his way through doors and fled the store, avoiding employees.

The employees of the store were scared that he could be carrying a gun. Gilder then ran out of the mall and was spotted driving away in a blue Mitsubishi Outlander.

Police Close In

Security cameras helped police in chasing Gilder’s vehicle through public safety images and toll data. That night, Florida Highway Patrol officers stopped a vehicle as described.

Gilder was arrested, and officers recovered Tiffany’s belongings within the vehicle. At the time of the arrest, Gilder was heard remarking, “I should have thrown them out the window.”

When Gilder was arrested, a scan revealed that he had swallowed multiple objects. The police assumed that the objects swallowed were the Tiffany earrings stolen. The worth of the jewellery stolen by him totalled $769,500.

Gilder also has serious charges pending against him, such as grand theft and robbery. Despite not wearing a mask during the crime, his gauze bandages and arm coverings prompted police to charge the theft as a robbery with a mask, a felony offence under state law.

After almost two weeks, the stolen jewel was recovered by the police when Gilder attempted to stash it away in the most unlikely manner.