Jonathan Birnbach thought he’d put three boxes of diamonds in his safe, according to reports—turns out, he left the boxes out, and workers had disposed of them

On Dec. 9, Jonathan Birnbach discovered that $10 million in diamonds were missing from the safe in his New York City business, J. Birnbach, Inc.

According to initial reports, Birnbach put the jewels in the safe on Nov. 24. He reportedly told investigators that the safe was kept unlocked during business hours, and that the diamonds may have been taken by contractors working in the store.

However, the New York Post now reports that the diamonds, which were kept in old wooden boxes, had not been stolen from the safe, but instead were mistakenly thrown in the trash by employees. They didn’t end up in the landfill. Security footage reveals that a building security guard took the boxes out of the garbage, the newspaper says.

The guard allegedly sold some of the stones to a jeweler in the same midtown building but still had three diamonds, including a 17 ct. stone worth $3.2 million, in his possession. He has turned all three stones, plus $10,000 cash, over to the police, the Post reports.

The guard was arrested Dec. 14 and has been charged with criminal possession of stolen property. His bail has been set at $100,000. 

JCK