Man posing as a real estate agent arrested in gem heist

The man stole more than $30K worth of jewelry from an open house

(Credit: iStock)
(Credit: iStock)

A faux real estate agent robbed a Toronto-area couple blind during a recent open house.

A 29-year-old man, who posed as a real estate agent, took more than $30,000 worth of jewelry from an upstairs bedroom during the couple’s showing of their house to agents, according to Inman. The house was located in Oakville, a town about an hour outside of Toronto that is among the wealthiest enclaves in Canada.

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Police arrested and charged the false agent with theft and unlawful entry. The man said he learned of the open house online. According to the report, police believe the robbery was not an isolated incident.

This isn’t the first time thieves have impersonated real estate agents. In January, Benjamin Eitan Ackerman was arrested in Los Angeles after posing as an agent to steal from celebrities like Usher and Jason Derulo.

A few months before, a 13-person crew was apprehended in L.A. after using real estate listings and applications and social media to stake out celebrity and wealthy people’s homes before stealing from them. [Inman] – Maya Blackstone