Bypassing the store's security, it is believed that the culprits then spent several hours gathering up jewellery before escaping through the same hole and then making their getaway in a late-model Chevy truck. 

The heist went unnoticed until the following day, when employees discovered the two large safes containing nearly all of the store’s inventory had been emptied .​

The store's owners, who have cultivated the business over 20 years, reported that the loss could be closer to $20 million and noted they did not have insurance coverage. "We're penniless, literally penniless,"  said Rita, the store's owner.  "In the gold business, you reinvest everything, so all our money was what was in the safe," added her son.

The FBI is collaborating with the LAPD in the investigation, examining security footage and collecting forensic evidence at the scene.  The level of used to create the tunnel, suggests a level sophistication that the theft had been methodically planned in advance. ​

For a visual overview of the heist, you can watch this news report:​