A housekeeper who has worked for a Westport home for 18 years been arrested, accused of stealing almost $400,000 worth of jewelry from her client, according to police.
Police started investigating on May 25, when a resident of Judy Point reported that a large amount of jewelry had been stolen from her home, as well as from two of her safes.
Westport detectives, as well as an insurance investigator from AIG, started looking into the case and determined that 35 pieces of jewelry, estimated to be worth a combined $384,330, had been stolen within the last year.
As police investigated further, they were able to determine that the codes to the safes had been taken from the victim’s day planner.
A detective contacted Connecticut Gold and Silver of Wilton and learned that the victim’s housekeeper, Martha Lopez, 57, of Norwalk, had pawned at least 20 pieces of jewelry between July 2012 and December 2014, according to a news release from police.
However, Connecticut Gold and Silver of Wilton provided photographs of the jewelry Lopez pawned and there were more than 20 items, according to police.
The victim identified 31 of the items as jewelry stolen from her home and at least 13 items were stolen from the safes, police said.
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On Tuesday night, Westport police arrested Lopez at her home on an outstanding arrest warrant charging her with first-degree larceny.
Lopez was unable to post a $150,000 court set bond and is due in Norwalk Court on Oct. 5.
It's not clear if she has an attorney.
