Bridgeport men indicted in $184,500 Kay Jewelers smash-and-grab, federal records say

Gold chains and pendants disappeared in minutes at a KAY Outlet in Clinton, where investigators say one man kept watch while another swung a hammer at the cases and swept out nearly $184,500 in merchandise.

A federal grand jury in Bridgeport returned an indictment on March 18 charging Kelijah Richardson, 28, and Anibal Rivera, 27, both of Bridgeport, in the February 3 robbery. Richardson, also known as "KeKe," "Keek" and "Lijh," and Rivera, also known as "Go," "Greenlight Go" and "greenlightgo.1," are accused of carrying out a smash-and-grab that targeted gold jewelry, the sort of merchandise that vanishes fastest once a showcase is broken and the counter goes from display to damage report.

Richardson was arrested on a federal criminal complaint on March 9, later appeared in Bridgeport federal court, pleaded not guilty and was released on a $250,000 bond. Rivera has been detained since his February 3 arrest on a state warrant tied to a separate alleged robbery in Manchester, where authorities say about $259,000 in jewelry was taken from Buckland Hills Mall on September 17, 2025.

Prosecutors say the Clinton case is not an isolated burst of theft but part of a wider jewelry crew moving through Connecticut, New York and Massachusetts. The FBI New Haven Violent Crimes Task Force says it has been investigating at least 20 robberies, burglaries and attempted robberies of jewelry stores and kiosks between September 2025 and February 2026, with suspects commonly dressed in dark clothing, masks and gloves, armed with hammers or other tools, and fleeing in vehicles with no plates or stolen or obstructed plates.

That pattern has consequences well beyond one shattered storefront. When gold becomes a smash-and-grab target, chain jewelers are forced to lock down inventory, limit casual browsing and treat the counter less like a display and more like a controlled handoff. The result is a gold-buying experience shaped by security, insurance and the economics of loss, where a chain or pendant may still catch the eye, but reaching it now comes with more friction, more scrutiny and a very different sense of risk.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen L. Peck, and the alleged Hobbs Act robbery carries a maximum penalty of 20 years. In Connecticut, the romance of gold at a chain store now sits under the hard light of federal case files and damaged showcases, a reminder that the smallest pieces can carry the largest consequences.