The aspiring model dubbed as the “Diamond Diva” allegedly trained for months before stealing over $4 million worth of jewels during an armed robbery spree, according to reports.
Abigail Lee Kemp, 24, is accused of the armed robbery of six on jewelers across five states – Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Tennessee. The multi-state crime spree began in April of 2015 when authorities say Kemp raided jewelers in Woodstock, Georgia. According to an FBI affidavit, she pretended to be an innocent bystander when her alleged accomplice entered the store. She laid down on the floor along with staff after being threatened but later sprang to her feet and acted as a lookout while an alleged male accomplice rifled through glass display cabinets snatching diamonds and other jewels.
Kemp made no attempt to conceal her face, and wore workout attire during each armed robbery. She was known to use a black pistol during the crime spree, which lasted nearly nine months.
Kemp also appears to have had a colorful life before taking up armed robbery at jewelry stores across the southeast, including a stint working at Twin Peaks and Hooters. She was an aspiring model, and was also briefly under center as the quarterback of a lingerie football team in Atlanta.
According to an FBI press release the most recent armed robbery occurred on January 4th at a Jared jewelry store location in Mebane, North Carolina. Following a series of brazen incidents, Kemp was arrested by the FBI at an apartment in Smyrna, Georgia on January 8th of this year.
But prior to starting her stint in crime, she reportedly did her homework. Authorities say Kemp received extensive “training” by two brothers, Michael and Larry Gilmore. According to the reports, they routinely practiced what amounts to an armed robbery training course until they believed Kemp was ready to commit the robberies. During this training, they reviewed layouts of the target jewelry stores with Kemp; instructed her on the proper way to use a handgun, how to secure the employees with zip ties, what merchandise to steal from the store; and gave Kemp various code words to use when communication during the jewelry store robberies. The men further decided what clothes/disguises Kemp would wear during the robberies and then purchased the items for her.
Authorities say that Kemp kept in touch with the men during the robberies via an earpiece connected to her cell phone.