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Thief nabs gold chain

A clean-cut, well-mannered jewelry thief snatched a $4,400 gold necklace out of the hands of a store clerk on Sept. 12, ran out the door and disappeared.

  And even though seven police officers responded to the theft at Vineyard Jewelers in the Sonoma Marketplace, no trace of the man the clerk called “well-spoken” could be found.

  According to the police report, the man entered the store around 10:30 a.m. and began to look at necklaces. He then stepped outside to look at the window display, came back in and asked the clerk to show him a 24-inch, 14-karat, gold Byzantine necklace.

  The clerk took the necklace out of the window held it out for the man’s inspection, at which point he simply grabbed it and ran out the door.

  The clerk, who was reportedly wearing high heels and couldn’t run fast, told police the man fled westbound on West Napa Street and then ran south on Third Street West.

  Police searched the area but could not find the suspect, who was described as a clean-cut, heavy-set Hispanic male, clean-shaven, 20-to-30-years old, about 5-feet, 8-inches tall, weighing some 210 pounds, with a bald spot on the back of his head and wearing dark jeans and a blue, long-sleeved shirt.

  The clerk said the man was well-spoken, polite and gave no reason for alarm.

  A Byzantine gold chain is characterized by a rope-like texture with a four-in-one link pattern.

  Anyone with information about the suspect is asked to call the Sonoma Police Department at 996-3602.