Man swallows diamond engagement ring worth £35K in an attempt ‘to steal it’

A jewellery store in London's Hatton Garden has strengthened its security measures after a customer allegedly attempted to steal a ring by swallowing it in full view of staff.

Security footage from the incident reportedly shows the man examining the ring before placing it in his mouth, apparently swallowing it and attempting to leave the store.

Staff members quickly became suspicious and confronted the customer. According to the jewellers, the man was then forced to regurgitate the ring after they challenged him over the alleged theft.

Junaid, a member of staff at the store, described the incident as unlike anything the business had experienced.

"It was really crazy. I still can't believe that it happened. You never know who you are sitting in front of," he said.

"We just happened to catch him. You don't know where else he has been that people just haven't noticed. It was absolutely insane."

He added that the family-run business, which has operated in Hatton Garden for three generations, had never encountered a similar incident.

"We have been in Hatton Garden for three generations, and we have never seen anyone swallow a ring before," Junaid said.

"I can't even take paracetamol without water. I don't know how he did it. It could have scratched his insides. He was talking normally—you couldn't even tell it was in there."

Another employee who witnessed the incident said the suspect remained calm throughout the encounter.

"The guy just seemed normal and was very calm," the staff member told Metro.

"At one point, he asked for water as he probably wanted to try to digest the ring, so we obviously refused. It really was crazy."

The employee credited the store's CCTV system with helping staff detect and respond to the alleged theft.

"Obviously, when something like this happens, you review security measures—and in this case, the CCTV saved us," the staff member said.