Imprisonment for an old British con artist who exchanged diamonds for millions of pebbles
A jewelry thief has been sentenced to more than five years in prison in Britain for stealing pieces worth millions of pounds by placing pebbles in place of gemstones.
Lulu Lakatos, 70, impersonated a gemologist under the pseudonym "Anna" to obtain the jewels, which were valued at a total of 4.2 million pounds ($5.8 million).
She claimed that a wealthy Russian customer sent her to straighten the jewelry before replacing it with worthless stones.
A jury at Southwark Crown Court in south London found her guilty of conspiracy to rob.
The judge described the robbery as "complicated and very daring" and involved "shameless deception."
Prosecutors said the theft of the seven diamonds, including one worth £2.2m, which belonged to a luxury family jewelry business in London's posh Mayfair district, was the largest of its kind ever in Britain.
The actual diamonds, which the London police said were stolen by Lakatos in cooperation with an international organized gang, have not been recovered after the theft, which occurred in March 2016.
Roman-born Lakatos from Saint-Brieuc in northwestern France arrived in London the day before the robbery, where she met two other members of the gang.
The trio then took an expedition to Boodles Jewelery's on Bond Street in Mayfair.
On the day of the theft, Lakatos examined the diamonds, trimmed them, wrapped them in tissues and placed them in boxes in a locked bag.
CCTV footage showed the moment Lakatos swapped her purse from her bag, using what the court called a "sleight of hand."
Lakatos' conviction came after her arrest in France on the basis of a European arrest warrant.
Her accomplices, Kristof Stankovic and Michael Yovanovic, were sentenced to three years and eight months in prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to rob.
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