Van Gogh Paintings Recovered

Van Gogh paintings stolen from Amsterdam found in Italy.

20:43 03 October 2016

Two Van Gogh paintings stolen during the 2002 raid on an Amsterdam museum were recovered by Italian police from the Naples mafia.

 

The Van Gogh museum in Amsterdam said that the paintings, valued by investigators at $100m, were recovered during a “massive, continuing investigation” by Italian prosecutors and organised crime officials.

 

The masterpieces were taken by thieves who broke into the museum using a ladder and sledgehammers. They were eventually found wrapped in cloth in house in the town of Castellammare di Stabia.

 

In January, several suspected drug traffickers were arrested including gang leader Raffaele Imperiale and Mario Cerrone, who apparently told investigators about the two paintings.

 

The theft of the two works had led to criticism of security at the world’s major art museums. The thieves broke into the museum through the roof during the night of 6-7 December 2002. They broke the first-floor window using sledgehammers before taking the paintings off the walls of the main exhibition hall. Experts were baffled because infra-red security systems were in place. During the theft, both paintings were uninsured and were on loan from the Dutch government.