A Florida jury has found Jaythan Gilder guilty of robbery and grand theft after he stole more than $760,000 worth of jewelry from a Tiffany & Co. store in Orlando in February 2025 and swallowed the stolen earrings in an attempt to hide the evidence.

The office of State Attorney Monique H. Worrell announced the verdict Thursday following the theft at the Mall at Millenia. Prosecutors said Gilder posed as a representative negotiating a jewelry purchase on behalf of a professional basketball player before grabbing the merchandise and using force against a store employee as he tried to escape.

According to reports, Gilder had been taken to a private room to examine the jewelry shortly before fleeing the store. An employee was injured during the escape.

After Florida Highway Patrol officers stopped Gilder outside Orlando, he allegedly swallowed the stolen earrings to conceal them. Video footage showed officers attempting to stop him from swallowing the items, repeatedly ordering him to spit them out. They were unable to recover the jewelry immediately.

Authorities monitored Gilder for nearly two weeks before recovering the stolen merchandise, according to the state attorney's office.

Worrell said the case involved both substantial financial losses and a threat to the safety of retail employees.

“This case involved not only a significant financial loss, but also the safety of employees who were confronted with violence while simply doing their jobs,” Worrell said. She added that the verdict demonstrated that theft and violence would not be tolerated in the community.

The state attorney also praised the prosecutors, the Orlando Police Department and other law enforcement agencies involved in the case.

Gilder was scheduled to be sentenced in early December. The verdict followed an investigation into a theft that combined a high-value jewelry robbery with an unusual attempt to conceal the evidence.