Thieves used explosives to steal ‘masterpieces’ from Dutch museum

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Thieves used explosives to steal “archaeological masterpieces” from a Dutch museum, police say.

In the early hours of Saturday morning, around 3:45 a.m., Dutch police, known as the Politie, said in a statement online that they received a report of an explosion at the Drents Museum, located in the northern part of The Netherlands, in the city of Assen.

Surveillance footage released by police shows multiple suspects working together at the museum’s door when a flash goes off and sparks fly into the air. Smoke can be seen billowing out as what appears to be a door and a security barrier are unhinged.

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When officers arrived at the museum, they said it was clear there was damage to the building caused by explosives. The method was used to blow open a door.

“Several archaeological masterpieces were stolen from the building; the golden helmet of Cotofenesti and three bracelets,” police said. The helmet was on loan from the National History Museum of Romania in Bucharest and dates back to around 450 BC, according to a news release from the museum.

Authorities are searching for multiple suspects, as well as the stolen items. They are relying on forensic evidence and surveillance camera footage. Interpol is involved in the investigation.

About 30 minutes after the explosion, police said there was a car fire in Rolde, a village about a 10-minute drive from Assen, where the museum is located.

“We assume that this car is linked to the explosion and the break-in at the museum. It is a possible scenario that suspicious persons in the vicinity of the fire transferred to another vehicle,” police said.

In another news release on Sunday, police said they are searching for more information about a dark grey Volkswagen Golf that was stolen on the evening of Jan. 22. It drove away from the museum just after the break-in. After it was set on fire, police said they believe the suspects used another getaway car.

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Police said they have obtained footage of a fire starting and a different vehicle stopping nearby and then driving away.

Authorities are asking local residents to come forward with any photos or videos they may have taken on Saturday that could help in the investigation. On Sunday, police said they had already received more than 50 tips.

The museum remains closed to public until Jan. 31, it said in a news release.

The Drents Museum is home to nearly 100,000 objects that have been collected since it was founded in 1854, it says on its website. “In terms of size and quality, the Archaeology collection is one of the most important in Northwestern Europe,” it says.

General director of the Drents Museum Harry Tupan called it a “dark day,” for the Dutch museum as well as for the National History Museum of Romania that loaned the stolen items.

“We are intensely shocked by the events last night at the museum. In its 170-year existence, there has never been such a major incident. It also gives us enormous sadness towards our colleagues in Romania. The police are investigating, we are awaiting the outcome of that,” he said in a statement released by the museum.

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The artifacts have “exceptional cultural and historical importance” for Romanian heritage and identity, and their disappearance has “a strong emotional and symbolic impact on society,” said Romanian President Klaus Iohannis, the Associated Press reported.

The helmet “exemplifies the use of highly prestigious and costly weaponry by warlords, made from expensive materials and rich in symbolic significance,” the Drents Museum explained online.

“The helmet was crafted from three welded gold plates and features a complex decoration of geometric, anthropomorphic and zoomorphic motifs created through punching. It is further adorned with ‘hemispherical nail studs’ of gold, each individually punched and welded to the helmet’s body.”

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