A 32-year-old man, born in China, is suspected of swallowing a 3-carat diamond worth over $26,000, which he tried to steal from a major jewelry show held in Colombo, the capital of Sri Lanka, a few weeks ago. “He examined the jewelry for a moment and just shoved it in his mouth,” said an unarmed security guard who works at the luxury shopping center.
According to local news network reports, the theft suspect asked the stall owner, Suresh da Silva, to examine the stone while his accomplice tried to distract the seller. Suresh noticed a man running his hands over his mouth while examining the diamonds – and immediately realized that the stone was down his throat.
The business owner immediately called the security personnel and the police, and filed a complaint against the thief and his accomplice. According to him, the arrested person worked with his friend whose job it was to replace the real diamond with a fake one. It is not clear whether the swallowed stone is the precious one or the alternative one.
He was arrested and taken with a police escort to the local hospital, where it was found in an X-ray scan that the diamond was indeed in the thief’s stomach. Although some doctors recommended surgery, the 32-year-old was given laxatives. An expert examination will soon determine whether Suresh will need to thoroughly clean his diamonds before returning them to display – or whether the confusion saved him the trouble.
Da Silva explained that swallowing diamonds can cause injury and bleeding in the gastrointestinal tract, but it’s clear that at this point he cares so much about the thief’s health.