He tried it on, liked what he saw in the mirror, and then, apparently, forgot to take it off before leaving the shop. A 30-year-old man has been arrested in Nagoya over the alleged theft of a luxury Audemars Piguet watch worth ¥46 million (about $290,000) from a Tokyo store. His explanation to police? He was so taken with how it looked on him that he just walked out with it.
CCTV footage released by Nakano Broadway shows the suspect fleeing the shopping mall on October 29
Audemars Piguet Watch Theft Suspect Arrested in Nagoya
The suspect, a man identifying himself as Amakon Markris Toshiya, 30, was arrested on suspicion of theft after police found him at an apartment in Nagoya on Wednesday morning. He allegedly stole the watch from Kamekichi Nakano Honten, a shop in the famed Nakano Broadway complex, on October 29. According to investigative sources, the store received the watch back by courier three days later, accompanied by a handwritten apology. Staff confirmed it was the stolen item by checking its serial number.
Following his arrest, Riya admitted to stealing the watch. “When I tried it on, I looked at myself in the mirror and really liked how it looked,” he told investigators. “Before I knew it, I had walked out of the store wearing it.” Police say the suspect boarded a bullet train at Tokyo Station after the theft and headed west. He is believed to have returned the watch by sending it in a parcel from a convenience store in Nagoya.
Previous Luxury Watch Heist at Nakano Broadway
Earlier this year, four luxury watches were stolen from another shop in the Nakano Broadway complex. They included three Richard Mille timepieces and a Patek Philippe, worth around ¥200 million ($1.3 million) combined. Two Chilean nationals, Manzano Quezada Boris Alexis, 33, and Pina Guzman Jeremy Paolo, 23, were later arrested. The pair pulled off the heist in just 10 seconds after smashing a display case. One fled on an electric kick scooter, while the other ran away.
