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Smash-and-grab fail: Watch jewelry store employees fend off would-be robbers

HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. — A quartet of would-be thieves picked the wrong store to rob on Sunday afternoon and left Princess Bride Diamonds empty-handed.

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According to The Orange County Register, four people dressed in black burst into the jewelry store at around noon Sunday in Huntington Beach, California.

Although one of the assailants got in a good whack, smashing a display case within seconds of entering the store, employees reacted too swiftly for any of the thieves to grab any loot, KCRA-TV reported.

At least three employees can be seen on surveillance video defending the store, with one worker rushing an assailant, another kicking a suspect repeatedly and a third fending off the attackers with a chair.

According to police, the incident occurred at Bella Terra Mall. Although no serious injuries were reported, one of the employees was struck with a hammer during the attempted robbery, KABC-TV reported.

“This is the first time I’ve seen anything like this ever recorded,” Moses Castillo, a retired detective with the Los Angeles Police Department, told the TV station.

According to KCRA, another smash-and-grab robbery was reported at Don Roberto’s Jewelry Store in Santa Ana about an hour after the Princess Bride Diamonds attempt seven miles away.

Three suspects were arrested in the Santa Ana heist, but it was not immediately clear if the two smash-and-grabs were linked, the TV station reported.