People in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside say precious rings, like those of Agnes Ulmer, would not likely be found in pawn shops because stolen goods are more often sold on the street.

The man who allegedly stole the rings off the hands of 91-year-old Agnes Ulmer was arrested and charged early on Friday, but the rings have not been recovered.

"How easy is it to fence stolen rings down here?" said Mike, a local resident. "Three seconds. Done in three seconds. Any kind of gold, high end product like that, gone in a minute. It's that quick," he said.

Pawn shops are accountable to the police for the goods they carry, and as a result most stores ask for identification and keep accurate records of their wares.

But that means many sales of stolen goods happen on the street -- and it also means the rings may be impossible to track.

"Yeah, you just ask anyone down here, they'll buy anything," said Raymond, another local resident.

Last Saturday, a man walked into Ulmer's room as she recovered from a leg amputation at Vancouver General Hospital, and offered to take her jewelry for a cleaning. The suspect, who was caught on surveillance cameras, never came back.

Tracy Lloyd Caza, 47, has been charged with theft in connection with the incident.

Since the rings haven't been recovered, police, along with Ulmer's grandson Jason and his wife Marjorie, are begging anyone who knows where the rings are to come forward.

"Nobody's gonna get in trouble," Jason Dudlets told CTV News on Friday. "In fact, you'll be a hero. Nobody would be in trouble at all. We're just begging. Begging anybody just to bring the rings back."

One of the rings has three diamond stones, another is a gold band with scrolling, and the third is a small solitaire.

Raymond said the thief who stole Ulmer's rings violated an unwritten code.

"If he goes to jail he's in trouble, because there's a code," he said. "You don't pick on old people."

Along with charges in connection with Ulmer's rings, Caza is also accused of trying to defraud another senior on Thursday, only hours before he was caught and less than a week after allegedly swindling Ulmer.

Caza has a long criminal past. In 1999, he was convicted of theft in New Westminster. Then in 2002, he had convictions for theft, assault, and break and enter. He was convicted in 2006 of break and enter in Vancouver.

Caza will remain behind bars on the latest charges until his court appearance next week.