3 arrested after 5 suspects armed with hammers rob Fairview Mall jewelry store: Toronto police

Security guards at Fairview Mall are seen responding to a jewelry store robbery on Dec. 30, 2024. (X/@Lukas5484138377)

Toronto police say they've arrested three of five hammer-wielding suspects who allegedly ransacked a Fairview Mall jewelry store Monday night.

Officers were called to the North York shopping centre, near Sheppard Avenue East and Don Mills Road, just before 8:45 p.m. for reports of a robbery.

• Download our app to get alerts on your device

Investigators said the suspects were armed with hammers and smashed the front glass door of the store to gain entry. The suspects then began smashing the store’s glass display cases and removed a quantity of jewlery before fleeing the scene.

Police said they arrested one suspect roughly 30 minutes after the incident. In an update Tuesday morning, police said two other suspects had been arrested. All three are described as male youths, between the ages of 14 and 17, and are facing charges of robbery with an offensive weapon and disguise with intent. Two suspects are also charged with failing to comply with an undertaking.

The suspects cannot be identified due to the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

Descriptions of the two outstanding suspects have not been released at this time.

No injuries were reported.

Video taken at the scene and obtained by CTV News Toronto showed security guards running to the store as it was ransacked.

The person who recorded the video said he heard “two big bangs” after the suspects, who he said were all dressed in black and wearing masks, entered the store.

“The glass was broken. People were urged to stay away from the area and go into the closest store,” the witness told CTV News Toronto.

Police later told CTV News Toronto that the store that was robbed is the same one that was targeted back on Dec. 16.

• ‘They’re definitely worried:’ Jewelry store robberies are on the rise in the GTHA

This is the second smash-and-grab-style robbery Toronto police investigated on Monday evening.

At around the same time, three suspects armed with hammers allegedly robbed a store near Eglinton Avenue West and Venn Crescent, just east of Keele Street. They all fled the scene in a vehicle, police said.

It's unclear if the two incidents are connected.