Prison sentences of between six and seven and a half years for the perpetrators of the Splash Jewelers robbery
The District Court of Sint Maarten has sentenced four men in connection with the armed robbery that took place on 9 July 2025 at a jewellery shop in the Simpson Bay Resort.
According to CCTV footage shown in court, the suspects acted in a coordinated manner and used a vehicle to ram their way into the complex’s lobby, causing significant damage. Three men got out of the vehicle whilst the fourth, who was armed, stood guard, threatening a security guard by placing the weapon against his back. Inside the shop, the display cases were smashed with a sledgehammer and jewellery was stolen. During the robbery, one of the criminals struck the shop manager with the sledgehammer, causing a broken arm and a wound to his forehead. A call for witnesses and the release of CCTV footage by the Public Prosecutor’s Office and the Sint Maarten Police Service (KPSM) led to the identification and arrest of the suspects. DNA traces belonging to them were also found on several items linked to the robbery. The prosecutor had sought prison sentences, highlighting the extreme seriousness of the offences, the use of a firearm, a coordinated operation and the serious violence inflicted on the victim, all committed in a tourist complex open to the public.
One of the perpetrators, who had a criminal record for similar offences and was on parole at the time of the robbery, was sentenced to seven and a half years in prison. The man who used the sledgehammer was sentenced to six and a half years in prison. The other two were sentenced to six years in prison for their involvement in the offences.
