Stupid wannabe thieves with sledgehammers try to break into a jewelry store – but fail miserably: Video

Two clumsy would-be crooks were filmed attempting to break into a jewelry store in California with sledgehammers – but failed miserably when the glass proved to be stronger than they were.

The two hapless robbers – dressed head to toe in black – walked into DeVons Jewelers in Lincoln Village in San Joaquin County around noon on Tuesday and attempted to break into an outdoor display case full of Rolex watches, according to KCRA 3 in Sacramento.

But their plan went completely wrong, because as a video recorded by a passerby shows, the glass refused to break despite repeated blows.

The would-be burglars were seen gripping the sledgehammers awkwardly and in a manner that suggested they were unfamiliar with them, and they appeared exhausted when the glass refused to give way.

One of DeVon’s employees escaped out the back door and ran to the neighboring Nekter Juice Bar, where she told owner Mark Sarale that the store was being robbed.

“She was pretty shaken,” Sarale said. “I looked outside, told everyone to stay inside, and closed the door so everyone would be safe. Then the boys started running.”

Meanwhile, employees of the jewelry store rushed to the display case, took the watches and took them away, Andres Lopez of the San Joaquin Sheriff’s Office told the station.

“When the suspects saw this, they stopped breaking the windows and fled in their vehicle,” Lopez said.

The dejected robbers marched to their getaway car – a black four-door sedan – and drove away.

“It’s not unusual,” Lopez said, according to ABC 10. “It happens all the time, anywhere, day or night. It’s called a burglary – they go in, quickly break into a vehicle or a building, take what they can and then leave.”

No one was injured in the incident, but the jewelry store suffered thousands of dollars in damage, the report said.

Lopez added that while the video will help police find the perpetrators, he does not recommend pulling out the cell phone every time a crime is committed.

“We don’t recommend that you ever take out your phone, start recording and contact these people because if you do that, they might turn their attention to you as well,” he said.

In a statement to ABC, DeVons said they could “only say that our staff worked quickly to secure our business and we are very pleased that all employees and customers are safe.”

But the attack shocked neighbors like Sarale.

“I was just shocked – it’s pretty brazen to do something like that at lunchtime,” he said. “It’s just really upsetting to put everyone in that danger… To do something like that is just sad.”