Picasso and Monet paintings among seven stolen in Rotterdam raid
Works by Picasso and Monet among seven taken from exhibition at Rotterdam gallery
Thieves broke into a Rotterdam museum yesterday and walked off with works from the likes of Picasso, Monet, Gauguin and Matisse, potentially worth hundreds of millions of euros.
Police haven't said how they pulled it off, but an expert who tracks stolen art said the robbers knew what they were after.
"Those thieves got one hell of a haul," said Chris Marinello, who directs the Art Loss Register.
The heist at the Kunsthal is the biggest art theft in The Netherlands since 20 paintings were stolen from Amsterdam's Van Gogh museum in 1991.
It was also a stunning blow for the private Triton Foundation collection, which was being exhibited publicly as a group for the first time. The collection was on display as part of celebrations surrounding the museum's 20th anniversary.
Police spokeswoman Willemieke Romijn said investigators were reviewing videotapes of the theft, which took place at about 3 am, and appealing for witnesses.
The Art Loss Register's Marinello said the items taken could be worth "hundreds of millions of euros" if sold legally at auction. However, he said that was now impossible, as the paintings have already been registered internationally as stolen.