(Yicai Global) Sept. 11 -- A court in mainland China recently handed down a verdict on a jewelry heist case from two years ago. Three criminals involved in the case were jailed for theft and a girl who was involved was not prosecuted due to her age, The Paper reported.

Two years back, a girl who was less than 12 years old at the time stole a necklace worth USD2.43 million (CNY15.82 million). A jewelry store in Hong Kong had displayed the studded necklace that featured 55 diamonds weighing 117.31 carats in a locked glass cabinet before it was stolen.

The robbery aroused the attention of China's Ministry of Public Security.

As they had planned, the three adults in the case pretended to choose jewelry to attract the attention of the shop assistant. When the clerk left the counter, the girl leaned over to the counter and took several keys from a drawer. She then sneaked to the shop's diamond necklace cabinet, used a key to open the jewelry counter door, and stole the diamond necklace. The theft took only 120 seconds. Afterwards, the clerk realized the item was missing while checking the merchandise.

Yongzhou police in central China's Hunan province arrested three females, including the girl in August 2015. Authorities nabbed the criminal leader, He Yanhui, in Hunan's capital of Changsha in April last year.

He Yanhui recently received a guilty verdict and a 15-year prison sentence from the People's High Court of Hunan Province, the court of second instance.

Earlier, Yongzhou Intermediate People's Court in Hunan upheld a second-instance verdict for female defendants Jiang Fangxiu and He Huaxiu, who got sentences of 14 years and 11 years, respectively.

Since the case took place in Hong Kong, Hong Kong's laws may apply and He Yanhui should be sentenced for less than 10 years, He Yanhui's lawyer said.

The People's High Court of Hunan Province believes that although the case was committed in Hong Kong, the preparation of the theft by He and other criminals engaged in the criminal act occurred in the mainland. After the crime, He and other offenders were arrested in the mainland, and most of the stolen goods were seized in the mainland, so authorities in the mainland have jurisdiction over the case.