Clown-costume suspects charged in Mexico heist

[October 10, 2009]  MEXICO CITY (AP) --  They aren't laughing now.

Prosecutors in western Mexico say they have filed robbery charges against two alleged members of a gang of thieves blamed for a "clown jewels" caper.

The gang -- some of whose members dressed up in clown costumes -- burst into a jewelry store in the western city of Guadalajara on July 26 and made off with at least 1.2 million pesos ($900,000) worth of booty. The clown costumes were later found abandoned in a car.

In an announcement issued Thursday, the prosecutor's office in the state of Jalisco says two of six suspects have been caught and charged while a third has been detained pending investigation.

It says one of the suspects confessed to being the one of the men behind the masks, seeking the "clown jewels."

[Associated Press]

Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.