Watch stolen after my AD sent it to RSC

[StanleyLock]

I finally decided to do something I’d been putting off for years: servicing my vintage Rolex Submariner 1680 from 1978. Reluctantly, I took it to the only authorized Rolex dealer in Houston, Deutsch Fine Jewelry, figuring it was in safe hands.

Weeks go by, radio silence. So I call today to check in. A few hours later, the GM calls me back with the kind of news you can’t make up: my watch, along with 50 others, was stolen while in transit to the Rolex service center. They think it might have been an inside job with FedEx.

So apparently, my 1978 Sub is now on its own adventure—probably living a better life than me somewhere in Mexico or Dubai. They apologized a lot, but the truth is, I don’t want “a replacement” or “compensation.” I want my watch. The one that’s been ticking away since the Carter administration.

Right now I’m somewhere between disbelief and Googling “how to catch an international watch-smuggling ring.” The dealer told me to just “hold tight,” which is honestly the last thing you want to hear when your watch has already run off.

So here’s my question: should I just wait and see what they say… or would you be raising hell by now?