Overview

• Seven suspects, including a juvenile, were arrested in Oakland and Dublin after the takeover robbery at Heller Jewelers, while many participants remain at large.
• Prosecutors named Michael Lamont Ray Jr., Jimmy Mack Ray and Ira Raheem Austin, filing 13 counts of second-degree robbery plus conspiracy with Proposition 36 enhancements; Jimmy Ray’s arraignment is set for Sept. 29.
• Investigators say 20 to 30 masked robbers used hammers, crowbars and pickaxes, brandished firearms and fired through a locked security door to escape, taking about $1 million in merchandise.
• A department drone funded by a 2023 retail-theft grant captured suspects and getaway cars; police halted a pursuit that exceeded 100 mph, later recovering some jewelry, two guns and several stolen vehicles.
• In a separate Southern California probe, six men were arrested over a multi-county smash‑and‑grab series linked to an August Palm Desert case, as industry data counts roughly 30 violent jewelry robberies in California since March.