Jewelry Store Robbery Began with Bethlehem Home Invasion

The armed robbery of a jewelry store in South Whitehall Township on Friday night apparently began with a home invasion robbery in West Bethlehem.

Police are searching for three armed men who took a Bethlehem man from his home to the jewelry store where he worked -- Bixler's Jewelers at 3900 Hamilton Blvd. in South Whitehall Township -- and forced him at gunpoint to open the store's safe, police said.

Rolex watches and other jewelry were stolen but authorities have not released the value of the merchandise.

During the course of the robbery, an employee's vehicle was taken and is still missing. The vehicle is a green Toyota Camry, PA Registration HGV-5710.

The fugitives are described as:

• Man #1: About 6 feet to 6 feet 2 inches tall, weighing about 200 lbs. wearing glass, dark clothing, light colored face covering and a knit cap with a stripe.
• Man #2: Wore dark colored jacket with hood, dark clothing and light colored face covering.
• Man #3: Wore gray hooded sweatshirt and gray sweatpants.

Anyone with information is encouraged to call 610-398-0337. 

In its weekend crime summary, Bethlehem Police said that a man and woman were robbed by armed gunmen at 1946 Kenny Drive and that the incident was being investigated jointly by Bethlehem and South Whitehall Township detectives.

The masked suspects broke through a back door, held a gun to a man's head and tied him up with duct tape. The victim said they waited until his wife got home and did the same to her, according to a WFMZ report.

The employee's wife ran to a neighbor's house for help after the men left with her husband just before 7 p.m.

The victims told WFMZ they weren't injured but are extremely shaken up.

, by two men wearing masks and hooded sweatshirts. They smashed several display cases and grabbed several pieces of jewelry, then fled in a tan colored SUV, possibly a Chevrolet Tahoe. One of the men displayed a handgun as the SUV left the parking lot, police said.

Bixler's moved to the Shops at 3900 on Aug. 25, 2011, five days after the store closed its location on MacArthur Road in Whitehall Township and nearly five years after closing a location at the Village West Shopping Center in South Whitehall.