The suspects in a string of nationwide jewelry heists appeared in a New Brunswick provincial court to face diamond theft charges on Wednesday.
Grigori Zaharov, 70, and Natalia Feldman, 44, of Vaughan, ON, were arrested last week outside a Vaughan, ON, condo tower and flown back to New Brunswick.
They are facing charges in Saint John in relation to a theft from W. Smith and Co. Fine Jewellers.
"Hopefully we're going to get very positive results and the jewelry stores can say, ‘We need to announce this more. We need to work together more,’" said jewelry store owner Wayne Smith.
Police say items of interest were seized during the arrest. Smith hopes one of those items will be his missing diamond.
"If it wasn't for all the support I've gotten, these people would still be running free," said Smith.
The store owner has said two people presented themselves as a couple in an argument over how many carats to buy, and then switched a $10,000 diamond with a fake while the salesperson was distracted.
Saint John police have said the duo who pulled the Saint John heist are "suspects in numerous other jurisdictions for similar incidents," and multiple police forces have been working on the file.
The court appearance for the pair was brief and the suspects requested an interpreter who speaks Russian. Judge William McCarrol initially expressed some skepticism, but later relented and told them that someone who speaks Russian will be made available to them at their next court date.
The director of loss prevention for Jewellers Vigilance Canada says jewellers across Canada have been asked to check their diamonds to make sure they haven't been victimized.
With files from CTV Atlantic’s Mike Cameron and The Canadian Press.
