WOMAN HELD IN RELATION TO THEFTS; JEWELRY FOUND WORTH $2 MILLION.

Byline: Lisa Van Proyen Daily News Staff Writer

A 25-year-old Eagle Rock woman found with $2 million in jewelry is under investigation for jewelry heists in the San Fernando Valley and across California, police said.

Kimberly Reyes, a Colombian national, was arrested April 13 at her Eagle Rock home after police found the jewelry, believed stolen last week from a jewelry salesman in Santa Clara, said Los Angeles police Lt. Al Corella.

Reyes and two other suspects in the Santa Clara case are believed to be members of a ring of Colombians that has carried out jewelry heists in North Hills, Encino and around the state, police said.

Statewide, there have been 49 jewelry heists so far this year, including 22 in the city of Los Angeles, that account for $13 million in losses, Corella said.

The thieves routinely follow jewelry manufacturers and wholesalers home or on business trips and rob them in a highly organized manner, officials said.

``They know no borders or limits,'' said Detective Mike Woodings of the LAPD's Burglary-Auto Theft Division, which also handles organized crime.

Investigators ask that anyone with information call [phone], or [phone] after hours.

In the Eagle Rock case, detectives were led to the home after the two suspects in the April 8 armed robbery and carjacking left a cell phone in a car they stole and abandoned, Corella said.

Detectives tracked down phone bills, which led to the Eagle Rock address, where a search warrant was served on April 13, police said.

There, platinum and gold rings, necklaces and bracelets were found wrapped in plastic and stored in dirty clothes in a hamper, Corella said.

``They were probably waiting to sell the stolen items to a receiver,'' Corella said.

A handgun was also found at Reyes' home in the 4300 block of Eagle Rock Boulevard, Woodings said. She has been charged with receiving stolen property, police said.

Police released a composite sketch of one of two suspects in the Santa Clara robbery. He is described as a Latino in his 30s, 5 feet 11 inches, 180 pounds and with dark hair and brown eyes. He also has a mole on his right cheek.

The second suspect is described as a Latino in his 20s, 5 feet 7 inches, 150 pounds with a thin build, black hair, brown eyes and a mustache.

Detectives were unsure whether the two Valley robberies were connected to the same ring in Santa Clara. Reyes' arrest came a day before two robbers believed to be linked to the Colombian ring hit two jewel brokers at their North Hills home. They got away with $300,000 in gems, police said.

And on March 1, five armed men followed an Encino Hills jewelry manufacturer home, robbing him of about $350,000 worth of jewelry.

The president of a North Hollywood-based jewelry manufacturer is all too familiar with the scenario. Thieves targeted him about six years ago when they got away with $350,000 in diamonds and gemstones. He now shows his jewels on Web sites and in catalogs, rather than in person.

``The risk is just insane for us,'' the manufacturer said without giving his name in fear of another attack. ``They were watching me all along. They put a gun under my neck and told me to get under my car and not move. . . . I had gone 15 years in the business without an incident, but that changed my life. . . . I don't want to ever be in that position again.''

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PHOTO A police composite sketch shows one of two suspects in an April 8 Santa Clara jewelry robbery.