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WATCH: Women steal $22K in gold, diamonds from Somerville pawn shop

SOMERVILLE, Mass. — Somerville police are searching for two women who stole nearly $22,000 in gold coins and jewelry from a pawn shop.

Surveillance video shows the women posing as customers and speaking to an employee at the shop.

“These two ladies came in and wanted gold bars but I have gold coins,” Theresa King said. “Then she started pointing to the rings, 'I’ll buy this I want this I want that I want that.'"

Nearly $22,000 of merchandise was out on the counter, plus an additional $8,000 in watches.

The manager drew up a list to keep track of the items laid out on the glass counter.

“She told me she wanted to buy all these watches. You can see my face. I’m surprised. Because that’s a really big transaction,” Daniel Berag said.

They kept up their charade, and because customers making these types of purchases are not uncommon the employees weren’t suspicious.

“We have a lot of customers from the Middle East and they buy a lot of stuff from us,” Berag said,

But these woman were not at the store to buy. They had King place the items in a box, then wanted them wrapped in paper.

That’s when one of them took the most expensive items and placed them under her wallet.

“Then they did a switcharoo the two ladies. She put her hand down with wallet and package to the side and dropped it in her pocketbook,” King said.