How to steal a Rolex

Rolex theft

Quartieri Spagnoli, a scenic but dangerous part of Naples, Italy, where Rolex theft is rife.
Quartieri Spagnoli, a scenic but dangerous part of Naples, Italy.

Naples, Italy— Here’s something you didn’t know about Rolex theft. It takes two men to steal a new model Rolex, while the older ones can be snatched by a single person. That’s the sort of gem our research nets, if we don’t piss off the mafiosi by pointing a camera into their faces (while they’re looking). Their rottweilers look like overstuffed pups, but you know there’s a reason the dogs are kept close, and you know the animals’ allegiance is backed by ferocious power, flesh-shredding choppers, and bone-crunching jaws.

Rolex theft: thieves' body guard
Nice doggy!

I wonder if Rolex is aware that it doubled labor requirements in the hostile acquisitions market? Still, everyone wears a Rolex in this neighborhood. The children of thieves wear them. “They don’t have one euro in their pocket,” we’re told, “but they wear a Rolex.”

The manpower numbers come straight from an expert: one of the three major Rolex thieves in the capital city of Rolex theft. “AS” [can’t use real names, sorry], our source today, is currently at large; but his two buddies are in jail, arrested by our guide and host, Officer DC, of Naples’ Falchi Squad, the tough undercover cops who fight power with power.

Rolex theft: Headquarters of a Rolex thief
The steel door is opened for Officer DC while Bob peeks in. Blasé womenfolk wonder: another raid?

So it’s a strange sort of respect and cooperation and turning a blind eye when DC knocks on the big steel door in the heart of Quartieri Spagnoli, Naples’ no-go zone if you’re not mafia (or police). A peek-a-boo slot opens and words are exchanged. “No video,” Officer DC says to me, drawing a big square around his face. I take it to mean that I can film, but not faces.

This is part 1 of 5.  Part 2

©copyright 2000-2008. All rights reserved. Bambi Vincent

Thiefhunter

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9 Comments

  3. […] demanded “for examination” by a pseudo-cop. …¢They take only cash from a wallet. …¢A watch is ripped off your wrist. …¢A phone is lifted from a restaurant table, right under your nose. …¢A woman’s […]

  4. […] world, and certainly not something that I would experiment with. The only thieves who are able to lift Rolexes are in Naples, Italy (then and now), and their technique is most certainly not appropriate for […]

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