Four masked men broke into a museum near Parma, Italy. They stole famous paintings by Renoir, Cézanne and Matisse in less than three minutes. The theft happened at the Magnani Rocca Foundation villa on March 22 night. Police shared details on Sunday.
Thieves Steal Priceless Artworks in Night Raid
The men entered through a back gate. They used a crowbar to force open a door. They grabbed three big paintings: Fish by Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Odalisque on the Terrace by Henri Matisse, and Still Life With Cherries by Paul Cézanne. These stolen artworks are worth €9 million, or about £7.8 million. The thieves ran away on a dark street just one minute before police arrived.
The museum sits in the countryside, 20 km from Parma. Experts say the stolen paintings are “too hot to handle.” That means they are hard to sell. Thieves cannot easily find buyers because news stories make them famous, The Guardian reported.
Experts Say Stolen Paintings Hard to Sell
Christopher Marinello runs Art Recovery International. He told The Guardian, “These works were not stolen for some private collection. The thieves want to make money.” He thinks the gang took them out of Italy fast, maybe to eastern Europe. But Google searches will show anyone trying to buy them.
Thieves might get a reward instead. The museum could offer €500,000 for info. Thieves could call and pretend to know where the stolen art is. Police might set a trap to catch them.
Quick Police Response Stops More Stolen Treasures
The foundation praised the police. They arrived in four minutes thanks to cameras. “Four minutes is fast for the countryside,” said Marinello. Still, it was not enough to stop the thieves.
This is part of a wave of museum thefts in Europe. Last October, thieves stole $102 million in jewelry from the Louvre in Paris in under eight minutes. Marinello called it the “smash and grab” time. Masks hide faces from CCTV.
The Magnani Rocca Foundation opened in 1977. It holds art by Dürer, Rubens, Van Dyck, Goya, and Monet. The stolen pieces came from Luigi Magnani’s collection. He died in 1984.
FEATURE IMAGE: Odalisque on the Terrace by Henri Matisse. Photograph: Magnani Rocca Foundation/Reuters (Image: The Guardian)
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