SAN JOAQUIN COUNTY, Calif. (KCRA) — Red tape cordons off the area where an attempted robbery took place in broad daylight Tuesday afternoon.

DeVons Jewelers in Lincoln Village, San Joaquin County, suffered thousands of dollars in damage after two suspects unsuccessfully attempted to smash the glass display case with sledgehammers.

“The sheriff’s office received a call about two individuals with sledgehammers who were in the process of smashing the outside display case containing the Rolex watches and attempting to get to the items,” said Andres Lopez, a deputy with the San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office.

A witness recorded everything on tape.

The video shows the perpetrators, dressed from head to toe in black, trying to break through the glass.

“The employees actually managed to get into the display case and steal the Rolex watch and the other items,” Lopez said. “When the suspects saw this, they stopped breaking the windows and fled in their vehicle.”

Mark Sarale is the owner of the Nekter juice bar right next door.

“I was just shocked. You know, it’s pretty brazen to do something like that at lunchtime and it’s really upsetting to put everyone in such danger,” Sarale said.

Sarale described the events from his point of view.

“I was in the store working when one of the employees from DeVons came to the back. She was pretty shaken up. She told me they had been robbed,” Sarale said.

While the police were still being contacted, Sarale took action.

“I looked outside and told everyone, ‘Just stay inside.’ I closed the door to protect everyone and then the guys took off,” Sarale said.

The sheriff’s office said it is reviewing video footage from security cameras at Lincoln Center to assist in the investigation.

“There are license plate readers here. There are super good cameras everywhere. So this doesn’t happen that often,” said Sarale.

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