Three paintings with a value of more than 9 million euros are stolen from the Renoir Museum
During the police chase the thieves have gotten rid of one of the paintings
BarcelonaNew blow to artistic heritage in France. Two individuals broke into the Auguste Renoir Museum in Cagnes-sur-Mer, near Nice, this Tuesday shortly before six in the morning, and fled with three of the museum's paintings. The loot, according to municipal sources, could be valued at around 9 million euros.
The museum's alarm was activated exactly at 5:48 a.m. and the police response was practically immediate: within just five minutes, municipal police officers were already at the scene. Video surveillance cameras captured the suspects, and a police pursuit began, during which the thieves, who were able to escape, got rid of one of the paintings.
The French police's department for the fight against organized crime and specialized delinquency (DCOS) has taken charge of the investigation and is maintaining a wide-ranging search operation to locate the thieves. At the moment, no information has been released regarding the stolen paintings.
The mayor of Cagnes-sur-Mer, Bryan Masson, has strongly condemned the assault via social media. "Attacking the Renoir Museum is attacking a part of our city's history and heritage," said Masson. The mayor described the events as "particularly serious" and has called for the urgent implementation of a security plan for cultural facilities in the area.
The museum was the final residence of Pierre-Auguste Renoir and the place where he died in 1919. Created in 1960, the museum's rooms house a dozen original paintings by the impressionist master, around forty sculptures, as well as documentary funds, photographs, and the artist's personal tools.
This new robbery comes almost a year after the one that took place at the Louvre Museum in Paris, where a gang managed to make off with jewelry of incalculable value. A few months ago, Europol published a report warning of a changing trend in Europe. While until now they were accustomed to thieves who study how to take the loot with total discretion and without confrontations, the European police coordination agency warned that there is a new generation of museum robbers who do not hesitate to use force.
