At least $500K worth of jewels stolen in 'high-level robbery' at I-90 rest stop
(THE MED CITY BEAT) - At least a half million dollars in diamonds and precious metals were taken during a robbery at a southeast Minnesota highway rest stop late Sunday.
Officials with the Olmsted County Sheriff's Office and the Minnesota State Patrol responded to a report of a robbery around midnight at the Marion rest area on Interstate 90 between Eyota and Rochester.
Local authorities told the Post-Bulletin that a vehicle carrying seven people had stopped to use the facility, when a group of at least four men pulled up, got out and smashed the victims' vehicle. The suspects were able to get off with suitcases filled with gold, silver and loose diamonds.
Authorities later found the van dumped in a ditch, but there was no sign of any of the suspects.
"This appears to be a high-level robbery by people who knew what they were doing," Capt. Scott Behrns told the paper. "We believe the victims were followed" from a jewelry and diamond trade show in Chicago.
Because the crime includes multiple states, the FBI likely will be involved. KTTC-TV reports no information on the victims will be released due to safety concerns.
(Cover photo: File / Kim Alaniz / Creative Commons)
