Search continues for second suspect in Santa Rosa jewelry store heist

Santa Rosa detectives Wednesday still were searching for an unidentified accomplice who escaped after a botched jewelry store heist two weeks ago that ended in an exchange of gunfire with the store’s owner.

The man left his wounded partner behind, police said. That suspect, Jimmy Lee Terry Jr., 43, of Oakland, was released Tuesday from Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital and booked into the Sonoma County Jail without bail on suspicion of numerous felonies, including attempted homicide, robbery and multiple gun enhancements.

Santa Rosa Police Sgt. John Cregan said detectives had received numerous tips on the identity of the second man and had developed leads on associates of Terry in Alameda County. But they had not yet zeroed in on a prime suspect.

Detectives spoke with hospitals and law enforcement across the Bay Area and have been looking into people who were treated with unexplained gunshot wounds, Cregan said. That list is long, he said.

Two masked men burst into Bennett Valley Jewelers on July 10 and held owner Ty Visscher and two store employees at gunpoint, smashing glass cabinets and shoving jewelry and watches into bags. Police suspect Terry was the man who grabbed a store clerk and held a gun to her head, using her as a human shield. Visscher exchanged gunfire with the robbers.

You can reach Staff Writer Julie Johnson at 521-5220 or julie.johnson@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @jjreport.