'I Am Completely Innocent!' Says Woman Charged with Stealing $25K of Jewelry

An Oak Lawn woman charged with stealing $25,000 worth of jewelry from the store where she worked proclaimed her innocence.

“I want you to know that I am completely innocent!” Annette Devries said after news broke of her arrest on a charge of felony theft.

Devries had nothing else to say about the allegations or her pending criminal case.

Devries reportedly came under scrutiny after a Helzberg Diamonds loss prevention manager contacted the police and claimed “at least 17 very expensive assorted jewelry pieces amounting to about $18,000” were missing from the company’s store in the Orland Square Mall.

“Furthermore, the inventory also showed one diamond ring missing from the layaway area valued at $7,000,” police said.

Devries gave at least two items — a Gucci watch and a bracelet — to her husband as gifts, police said. She also allegedly sold a ring to a woman for $1,000.

Despite her generosity to her husband, things between the couple apparently soured, as Devries took off and moved in with a “new boyfriend” on First Street in Lockport, police said.

The husband provided the law with the boyfriend’s address, police said, and they arrested Devries there after finding her asleep on a couch.

A woman answering the phone at the Lockport residence said she knows Devries but insisted she no longer lives there.