From the Editor: $1.8 Million USD in Watches Stolen from Watch Collector in New Zealand
A total of 70 watches worth over $1.8 Million USD were stolen in New Zealand two weeks ago from a watch collector’s home that goes by the Instagram handle @Horolson. This fine collector had been collecting watches for almost ten years and is a big fan of independent watchmakers, and a seasoned collector that owned at one point more than 100 watches ranging all the way from Patek Philippe Grand Complications to Jaeger-LeCoultre, Roger Dubuis, and everything in between.
@Horolson is an ex-pat in the corporate world that relocated across different countries all the way from Switzerland to Malaysia, to Ukraine, and other countries in between. Frequently moving from one country to another, it was always challenging for him to move his watch collection without turning this into a complete nightmare and headache. Due to his busy lifestyle, on his last move from Japan to New Zealand, he didn’t have time to get a safe deposit box at the bank or even secure watch insurance as he was moving between these two countries.
Therefore, he locked all 70 watches in two big Pelican suitcases and hid them inside his closet before he had the time to safely store them at the bank. The unfortunate event took place on the night of November 12th, 2022 during the time where he was out to dinner and had not armed his house alarm. Even though all doors and windows were properly locked, the experienced thief/thieves forced his/their way into the property. After coming back three hours later, the two Pelican cases were now long gone. @Horolson immediately contacted the police and when the police showed up the next morning, they couldn’t find any fingerprints or traces of whoever took the watches.
Below you will find the list of stolen watches —A. Lange & Söhne, Patek Philippe, JLC, Hautlence, Franck Muller, Vacheron Constantin, Audemars Piguet, Grand Seiko, and Cartier just to name a few— with their respective serial numbers in case anyone ever comes across them. All major auction houses and most of the manufactures have received this same list from @Horolson and they have also been registered in The Watch Register —the largest international database of lost and stolen watches.
If you have any information on the whereabouts of the watches or if you are offered any of them for purchase please contact your local police department or message @Horolson via Instagram.
Stay safe out there as watch theft is on the rise. For more info on how to protect yourself and what precautionary measures you can take to avoid watch theft please check out this other article, I wrote in the past. As a victim of watch theft myself, all I can tell you over and over again is to at the very least insure your watches and keep them in a safe deposit box at the bank or in a bolted safe at home.