VIDEO: Thief snatches '$800,000 watch' from tourist in Barcelona, police value it at $45,000

Gulf Today Report

A thief snatched a Swiss-made Hublot watch from the wrist of an American tourist in Barcelona.

The tourist, who was not identified by Spanish police, was walking through the city's central Gothic Quarter with his family when an assailant snuck up behind him and tore his watch off his arm.

The police released the CCTV footage showing the broad day robbery in the heart of Barcelona.

According to local media, the tourist first filed a complaint with the Catalan Police saying the watch was worth $800,000 (£685,000).

But the police did their own investigation into the watch and lowered the valuation to $45,000 (£36,870), according to El Periódico.

It is not clear why the police reduced the value of the watch.

The American told police the watch was snatched from his wrist shortly after 2pm.

Unconfirmed reports first identified the watch as a Swiss-made Hublot Black Caviar Bang, featuring hundreds of precision-cut black diamonds.

The limited edition watch is priced at $1 million in the United States and takes over 2,000 hours to complete from the design stage.

However, reports said it was later revealed to be a less valuable version of the model.

The CCTV footage of the lightning-fast robbery shows the unsuspecting American walking down an alley as a man sneaks up behind him and grabs his arm.

As the thief swings his victim with one hand, he snatches the watch with the other and runs off leaving the family stunned.

The images show the tourist with his partner and three small children at the time of the robbery.

The police said at the time: 'I can confirm that we are investigating the violent theft of a designer watch valued at $800,000 following a complaint from a tourist.”

No arrests have been made yet.

According to Spanish media, the person who reported the crime said that he was surrounded by a gang of assailants who snatched the watch from his wrist.

The CCTV footage, released by the police, appeared to contradict man’s version, showing a single man robbing the tourist.

According to El Periódico, the victim was returning to his hotel after lunch at a nearby restaurant.

The city centre of Barcelona is seeing a high crime rate over the past few years, mainly caused by pickpocketing and robberies in its streets.