A man in Florida recently attempted to steal jewellery worth over £1 million from a Tiffany & Co store by posing as a buyer for a professional US athlete. During the robbery, he grabbed the items and attempted to flee. While one diamond ring was dropped in the struggle, he managed to escape with two pairs of diamond earrings valued at £600,000. In a bizarre twist, the suspect swallowed the jewellery in an effort to avoid arrest. After being apprehended 340 miles away, he reportedly asked: “Am I going to be charged for what is in my stomach?”
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This is not the first time a thief has resorted to swallowing stolen valuables to evade capture. One of the UK’s most notorious jewel thieves, whose exploits were depicted in the ITV series Joan, also used this method. In this instance, the stolen earrings were eventually recovered after passing naturally through the thief’s body. However, swallowing foreign objects can lead to severe medical complications. In the US alone, foreign body ingestion is responsible for approximately 1,500 deaths annually. While most swallowed objects pass through the digestive system without intervention, 10-20% of cases require endoscopic retrieval, and 1% necessitate emergency surgery.
Small objects like earrings may pass through the digestive system relatively easily due to the oesophagus’s 3cm diameter. However, larger or irregularly shaped objects can become lodged, potentially causing life-threatening complications. The stomach, with its distinctive J-shape, narrows as it connects to the small intestines, creating a point where swallowed items may become trapped. In one extreme case, doctors in Iran removed over 450 metallic objects from a man’s stomach, including screws, keys, and other metal parts. Prisoners have also been known to swallow mobile phones, which are too large to pass through the digestive system, necessitating surgical removal.
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If a foreign object reaches the large intestines, it must navigate further anatomical obstacles. The appendix, where the small and large intestines meet, can trap items, sometimes leading to appendicitis. There have been documented cases of earrings, screws, and stones causing this condition. The risk of complications increases near the rectum, where the intestinal walls narrow, making perforation more likely. Such perforations can lead to life-threatening infections like peritonitis and sepsis, with mortality rates approaching 50% if untreated. While gold, silver, and precious stones remain largely unchanged by stomach acid, it remains uncertain whether the journey endured by these particular Tiffany earrings will affect their value.
