Guilty plea sends Birks robber to prison for 15 years

A 48-year-old man described by Laval police as a “longtime repeat offender” has been sentenced to 15 years for an armed robbery at a Birks jewelry store in Carrefour Laval in 2012.

Dimitrios Batzakis was sentenced Thursday in Superior Court in Laval after pleading guilty to robbery and weapons charges just as his trial was set to begin, Laval police announced on Friday.

Police said the investigation into the robbery in Laval led to links with robberies in other Birks branches in the Montreal area, which in turn led to a multi-force police operation and a series of raids in November of 2014.