Suspect at large following 'sophisticated' break-in at Surrey jewelry store

A Surrey RCMP vehicle is pictured. (Jordan Jiang / CTV News Vancouver)

Police say they have identified two men responsible for a "sophisticated" break-in at a jewelry store in Surrey, B.C., including one man who remains at large and is now wanted on a Canada-wide warrant.

Surrey RCMP officers were called to the break-in at the jewelry store in the city's Guildford neighbourhood around 8 a.m. on March 31 after a witness reported seeing two people loading a safe into a vehicle behind the store.

Mounties arrived at the store near the intersection of 108 Avenue and 146 Street and found a rear door ajar, though the business had not yet opened for the day.

Investigators believe the thieves entered the store through a business on the second-floor of the building, in an operation that likely took several hours and "a sophisticated series of events using tools and other entry devices," the Surrey RCMP said in a news release Friday.

A 51-year-old man, who has since been deported from Canada on an unrelated matter, has been identified as one of the suspects, police said.

The other suspect has been identified as a 27-year-old man from outside of B.C. who is now the subject of a nationwide warrant for his arrest.

Police have not released the names of either suspect.

"Despite the elaborate planning that appears to have went into committing this break and enter, it was the concerned citizen who reported them to police, who the suspects may not have accounted for," Cpl. James Mason said in the release.

"We want to thank this concerned citizen who observed the crime in progress and called police to report it."