INDIANTOWN, Fla. (CBS12) — A suspect is now behind bars for allegedly stealing $26,000 worth of jewelry from an Indiantown woman’s home while construction work was being done. The swift action of a coworker proved pivotal in locating the stolen items and leading to an arrest.

The incident occurred on Wednesday when an Indiantown woman called the Martin County Sheriff’s Office to report that a watch, three rings, and three pairs of earrings, totaling $26,000 in value, were missing from her home. Five construction workers were present at the residence at the time of the theft.

According to Major Ruben Romero, the employer immediately suspected one of the workers.

“The boss of the job site, of the work they were doing, found out about the theft. He, in turn, policed his own guys he was working with and said, ‘Hey, let’s check everybody’s pockets, if you didn’t steal anything, then there’s nothing to worry about.’ One of the gentlemen started acting suspicious,” Major Romero explained.

See also: Palm Beach County employees identified in deadly Royal Palm Beach shooting

That coworker then followed the suspect, identified as Noe Israel Vail Castro, to the bathroom, where the coworker discovered jewelry matching the description of the stolen items in a trash can. The coworker also found the missing watch hidden under the table where Castro had been sitting.

Following the discovery, the coworker met with deputies at a RaceTrac gas station in Stuart. Upon the arrival of law enforcement, deputies observed Castro’s behavior.

Major Romero noted that body language was a telltale sign: “Many times when law enforcement shows up and you’ve done something wrong, there are certain things that you’re not going to be able to hide. One of them is body language.”

Deputies arrested Castro and charged him with second-degree grand theft.

Major Romero praised the quick actions of the victim’s employer and the coworkers: “Our citizens, also the employees of this company, did the right thing. They were notified that there was a theft on the job, immediately became alerted, and took it upon themselves to make sure justice was brought forward for our victim.”

The victim commented that she is thankful for the Sheriff’s Office and her coworkers for speaking out.

Find more ways to stay up to date with your latest local news. Sign up for our newsletter to get the day’s top headlines delivered right to your inbox. Subscribe to our YouTube channel for the biggest stories and can’t miss video.