Although parking thieves are nothing new, those of this magnitude are, and the top robbery raises questions about whether there is adequate security.
Bill Phillips said he and his girlfriend had just finished some luxury shopping when the incident occurred.
“I went to Louis Vuitton, David Yurman jewelry, Hermes,” Phillips said.
Hands full of holiday gifts, the couple left King of Prussia Mall at the Nordstrom exit to leave their belongings in the back seat of the SUV.
Phillips said they returned to the mall to eat and, less than 20 minutes later, received a phone call from his office.
“Saying, ‘Are you at the mall?’ I said, “Yes, I’m here right now.” They said, “You better get back in your car. Someone broke into your car and stole everything from you, “Phillips said.
Two witnesses told police that two women arrived at Phillips’ SUV with a bat or sledgehammer, broke its rear window and took off with its loot.
“In about a minute or a minute and a half, they’re gone,” Phillips said.
Witnesses said the thieves covered the registration number.
Phillips said what was even more worrying was that the mall’s surveillance cameras did not detect the murder, even one that was just above his vehicle.
“They said they’re heading for the elevator coming out of the lower level because they have problems there, but the main parking area there has no rooms at all,” Phillips said.
A look at the parking lot seems to show four surveillance cameras. We wanted to find out how no one captured the crime.
The Simon group that owns the mall had no comment when Action News asked for answers to the investigation and if the mall had enough oversight nowadays.
Upper Merion police said it was unclear whether the criminals chased Phillips and his girlfriend from the KOP Mall or chased them into the parking lot.
Investigators said they had no clues.
“The vehicle was parked in an area that did not have very good surveillance,” said Lt. Jeffery Maurer. “But we’re trying to take a route back to see where our victims came from in the mall.”
Phillips said he works with his credit card companies to receive a refund for some luxury items.
“It’s a lot of money. Unfortunately, I didn’t really hear anything from the mall. I didn’t hear anything from the police,” Phillips said.
Police in the Upper Merion said they are stepping up patrols during the holidays, but people need to do their part and be aware of their surroundings.
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