A Year Later, Owner To Be Reunited With Stolen $10,000 Watch

PASADENA (CBSLA.com) — Alessandro Komadina never gave up hope that he would see his limited-edition Panerai watch.

The rare watch valued at $10,000 was taken a year ago from his locker at Gold's Gym in Pasadena, where he works as a fitness trainer.

"Oh, man! I was like, 'I can't believe it,' " he told KCAL9's Brittney Hopper.

Komadina said the limited-edition watch was a gift and had sentimental value.

Determined to get it back, he checked eBay and other sites every day for a year but had no luck until a couple of weeks ago.

It was then he said he saw the watch and alerted authorities.

Under a guise of being an interested buyer, police set up a meeting with the seller.

"Our victim had retained the paperwork that belonged to his original watch which had the serial numbers, and they did match the watch in question," a police officer said.

Police said it's common for victims to find their stolen items on eBay or Craigslist, but what's uncommon is that it took a year.

An arrest was made, and the watch is being sent back to Komadina.

Police said it's important to retain documents, especially with expensive and rare jewelry.