John J. Shakra Jr.

William R. Hamilton III

William R. Hamilton III and John J. Shakra Jr. told deputies they entered the mall Wednesday night when they agreed that Hamilton would replace a gold necklace with a fake one at a jewelry store at the mall.

At about 6 p.m. that night, Shakra, 23, waited outside as Hamilton, 25, remained at Watches Plus and asked to see a 14-carat gold chain, according to sheriff’s reports.

While the business owner waited on other customers, Hamilton snatched the gold necklace and substituted it with the fake, he told investigators.

Hamilton told deputies he fled as the owner yelled out, “You got my chain!”

Hamilton and Shakra then drove to Treasure Coast Liquidators, where Shakra went in to sell the necklace, deputies said.

Deputies found Hamilton pulling off his jeans in the parking lot of the Granada Plaza on U.S. 1, according to the reports.

Deputies found Shakra inside the pawnshop.

Hamilton and Shakra were both being held at the Martin County jail on Thursday, with Hamilton on $13,000 bail and Shakra on $22,500.

Hamilton faces charges of grand theft, dealing in stolen property and resisting a merchant. Shakra was arrested on charges of grand theft, dealing in stolen property and false verification of ownership.

Tags: Grenada Plaza, John Shakra Jr., Martin County Sheriff's Office, Treasure Coast Liquidators, Treasure Coast Square mall, Watches Plus, William Hamilton III

This entry was posted on Thursday, March 5th, 2009 at 4:17 pm and is filed under Crime, Economy, Jensen Beach, Martin County, Schools. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.