Police searched a Pasadena neighborhood into the night, putting residents on alert.
"It was pretty scary. My 16-year-old daughter happened to be in the house alone. She called me frantically. She saw the SWAT guys all lined up in the yards," said Ginger Umutyan, whose backyard was searched.
The SWAT team and canine units went yard to yard and house to house on the hunt for the thieves. One by one the suspects were tracked down and taken into custody.
Police said the brazen robbers burst into a Pasadena jewelry store on busy Colorado Boulevard in the middle of the afternoon. Four to five men armed with hammers took as much jewelry as they could grab.
A police helicopter and ground patrol cars followed the suspects in their vehicle until they stopped and jumped out.
Police are trying to determine if the same suspects were responsible for a similar robbery of a Glendale jewelry store. Pasadena police will work with Glendale police to try to determine if the suspects are part of the same crew.
Anyone with information is urged to call the Glendale Police Department at (818) 548-3987.