Engagement ring missing after delivery driver takes box during return shipment

CORNELIUS, N.C. (WBTV) - A $12,000 engagement ring, gone. Kristy Schiano says UPS lost her irreplaceable diamond - and she believes they’ve done the bare minimum to find it.

In March, Schiano was on a work trip in Arizona when she slipped off her engagement ring while putting on moisturizer in her hotel room.

But in an early morning rush to catch a flight back to North Carolina, Schiano left it behind.

“Immediately, when I was in the Uber I realized, oh no. My heart fell into my stomach,” Schiano said.

She called hotel staff who told her they’d found the ring and would be shipping it back to her. But her relief was premature.

“It never made it here,” she said sitting in her Cornelius living room.

The ring hadn’t belonged to Schiano for long. Her fiancé had proposed with the custom ring they’d designed together in August.

The band’s metal twists was symbolic of their view of their partnership.

“This is a symbol. We partnered on this ring and that kind of makes me feel sad deep in the stomach,” she said.

Schiano said she didn’t have to wait long before she received a UPS tracking number and was told a signature would be needed when the package arrived.

“Oh great,” she said. “It’s on its way but it never made it here.”

Schiano’s doorbell video camera shows the UPS driver walking up and leaving the package on the doorstep. He then walks to the back of the house, potentially to see if anyone was home - but no one was there at the time.

The video then shows the driver going back to the front porch, picking up the package and walking away.

That is where Schiano says the trail goes cold.

“He never scanned it when he went back on the truck.”

Schiano says she instantly contacted UPS who opened an investigation.

“They have nine days to do that. It took them two days and UPS got back to me and said, no, sorry it’s lost. Oops,” she said.

The ring was undervalued on the initial shipping documentation which means UPS is offering Schiano a payment of $500 for a ring worth $12,000.

“I understand it is a major shipper, I understand logistics are very hard but oops,” Schiano questioned.

Next month, she’s getting married and another ring will be slipped on her hand. But she hopes the one given to ask for it will somehow make it back to her.

“Looking back, what could I have done differently? I don’t think there’s anything I could have done differently.”

WBTV reached out to UPS for comment and provided Schiano’s tracking number. A company spokesperson said they are looking into the issue and “will be in touch.”

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