In a bizarre turn of events, Orlando police have successfully recovered two sets of Tiffany & Co. diamond earrings worth a combined total of $769,500 after an alleged thief swallowed them in an attempt to avoid arrest. The earrings had been stolen during a robbery at a Tiffany & Co. store in Orlando on February 26, 2025.
Jaythan Gilder, 32, is facing multiple charges, including robbery with a mask and grand theft in the first degree, following the unusual incident. Gilder reportedly swallowed the valuable earrings while attempting to flee from police officers after the theft.
On the day of the theft, Gilder allegedly posed as an assistant to an NBA player to gain access to a VIP room inside the Tiffany & Co. store, where he was shown high-end jewellery. While being shown the items, Gilder is said to have distracted store employees and made off with two pairs of diamond earrings, each valued at hundreds of thousands of dollars.
As he ran out of the store, police say Gilder also dropped a diamond ring worth $587,000. However, by the time police arrived at the scene, Gilder had already managed to flee. Authorities quickly pursued him, and later caught up with the suspect. At that point, they observed him swallowing several objects, which were believed to be the stolen earrings.
After his arrest, Gilder was transported to a local jail. Police allege that he made an unsettling comment to jail staff, asking, “Am I going to be charged with what’s in my stomach?” suggesting that he knew the earrings were inside his body. It wasn’t long before police realized that Gilder had swallowed the evidence in a desperate attempt to evade capture.
An x-ray taken of Gilder’s abdomen confirmed the presence of foreign objects inside his body, which were later identified as the stolen earrings. Detective Aaron Goss of the Orlando Police Department described the situation as a “marathon, not a sprint,” as police began the long and somewhat uncomfortable process of waiting for the jewellery to be expelled from Gilder’s system.
For more than two weeks, Gilder was monitored at an Orlando hospital under constant surveillance by detectives. During this period, police took all necessary precautions to ensure that he would not dispose of the stolen items. On March 12, 2025, the earrings were finally recovered.
The jewellery was then returned to Tiffany & Co., where the store’s master jeweller confirmed that the serial numbers on the recovered earrings matched those of the stolen pieces. The recovery marked the successful conclusion of a lengthy and highly unusual investigation.
This was not the first time Gilder had been linked to a Tiffany & Co. store robbery. Police allege that he was involved in a similar theft at a Tiffany & Co. store in Texas in 2022. Furthermore, authorities have revealed that Gilder has a significant criminal history, with 48 separate warrants out for his arrest in Colorado. These warrants add further weight to the case against him, painting a picture of a man with a longstanding pattern of theft and evasion.
The case has garnered significant media attention, partly due to the dramatic and bizarre nature of the theft. The fact that Gilder swallowed the expensive earrings in an attempt to hide the evidence has added an unusual twist to the case, which continues to captivate both law enforcement and the public.
Gilder is currently being held in custody at the Orange County Jail, where he is awaiting trial. He faces serious charges of grand theft and robbery, and with his extensive criminal history, he could face significant legal consequences if convicted. The recovery of the stolen earrings has provided some relief to Tiffany & Co., but the case is far from over as authorities work to ensure that Gilder is held accountable for his actions.
This incident highlights the challenges faced by high-end retailers, especially those dealing in luxury goods, such as Tiffany & Co. As crimes targeting expensive jewellery continue to rise, stores must be increasingly vigilant in preventing theft and ensuring that they have the proper security measures in place. The robbery and subsequent events raise questions about how thieves are able to carry out such brazen crimes and what measures can be implemented to stop them.
Tiffany & Co. has since cleaned the recovered earrings and restored them to their original condition. However, the case has sparked renewed discussion about the security measures taken by luxury jewellery stores and the lengths to which criminals are willing to go to avoid capture.
