The long arm of the law is reaching around the world in this investigation as law enforcement officers try to find two Romanian citizens who stole a Rolex watch from a Pensacola business, fled the area and were identified with help from a crime analyst in the United Kingdom.
German Adam, 27, and Constantin Munteanu, 28, are both wanted for grand theft of a Rolex watch from Jewelers Trade Shop, 26 S. Palafox St. The theft occurred November 17, 2016 when the two suspects entered the store and inquired about purchasing the watch, which was valued at $37,550.
The suspects said they would pay half the cost in cash and the remainder via credit card. One of the suspects asked an employee to ask her supervisor for the best price they could get on the watch and told her they would return with the credit card.
The suspects then left the store, and within approximately 10 minutes, the employee noticed the watch was missing. The employee told police that during their encounter, the suspects had constantly distracted her with questions and kept trying to give her cash.
The theft was posted on the Pensacola Police Department’s Face Book page, distributed to media via press release and an intelligence bulletin was sent to law enforcement agencies.
On March 29, Detective Gilbert Galloway Jr. received an email from an analyst for Northumbria Police in England who works with various international law enforcement agencies regarding Romanian nationals who commit sleight of hand distraction thefts. The group has traveled from the United Kingdom to the United States and Canada.
The analyst told Galloway that Adam’s brother, Mircea Adam, was taken into custody March 27 in Nogales, AZ, after he illegally crossed the border from Mexico. Mircea Adam had arrived in Mexico on March 25 on a flight from Madrid. The analyst said Mircea Adam’s cell phone contained an image of an online article related to the watch theft in Pensacola.
As the analyst continued his investigation, he identified the two suspects and with combined information from Galloway, the two men were identified as the ones who stole the watch from Jewelers Trade.
Munteanu is believed to still be in the United States. However, German Adam was deported from Canada on March 4 and returned to Romania, Galloway said.
Anyone having information on the incident or who may know Munteanu’s location is asked to contact Detective Gilbert Galloway Jr. at 435 – 1974, the Pensacola Police Department at 435 – 1900, or Crime Stoppers at 433 – STOP.