A Sumner County jury has convicted a man of stealing a $30,000 Rolex watch in a targeted theft scheme that police say followed a pattern known as “jugging.”
The case began on Nov. 11, 2023, when a married couple stopped at Genesis Diamonds in Nashville to get a Rolex watch appraised. After leaving the store, they drove to a Sam’s Club in Hendersonville. While they shopped, the watch sat inside a backpack in their vehicle. When they returned, a window had been smashed and the backpack was gone, taking the Rolex and several other personal items with it.
Hendersonville Police quickly linked the theft to the couple’s earlier stop at the jewelry store. Surveillance video from the Sam’s Club parking lot showed a black Dodge Charger trailing the victims’ car. Once the couple walked into the store, someone stepped out of the Charger, moved fast toward their vehicle, then got back in before the car sped off.
Investigators recognized the method as jugging, a form of organized theft where criminals watch people leave jewelry stores or banks, follow them to their next stop and break into their car or rob them outright.
Detectives went back to Genesis Diamonds four days later to pull surveillance footage from the day of the theft. The video confirmed the same black Charger had been parked outside the store while the couple was inside, then pulled away to follow them once they left carrying the Rolex box.
While combing through the footage, store security spotted something else: a silver Lexus idling in the same spot where the Charger had waited days earlier. Security flagged it to detectives right away.
Detectives decided to test their theory. They walked out of Genesis Diamonds carrying a large jewelry box, speaking loudly about a big purchase they had supposedly just made, then headed toward an unmarked vehicle.
The silver Lexus took the bait. It pulled out behind the detectives and followed them nearly 22 miles from Nashville into Hendersonville. Detectives called in marked units, and officers stopped the Lexus on Rockland Road. The driver was identified as Patrick Smith.
A search of the vehicle turned up a window punch tool, cut-resistant gloves, a homemade device for concealing a license plate and roughly $8,194 in cash. Detectives also seized two cell phones belonging to Smith. A digital forensic review of the phones found photos of the stolen Rolex and other jewelry, text messages containing images of the watch, and internet searches for Genesis Diamonds, Rolex watches, Dodge Chargers, jewelry stores, jewelry brokers and even “Nashville jugging news.”
After a three day trial, a Sumner County jury found Smith guilty of Theft of Property Over $10,000, Burglary of an Automobile and Possession of Burglary Tools. His bond was revoked following the verdict. Sentencing is set for Aug. 24, and Smith faces up to 15 years in prison.