Completely surprisingly, after three years, the stolen pieces of jewelry from Dresden’s Green Vault reappear. Even more surprising is that they are largely intact. An art theft expert thinks he has an explanation.
Art theft expert Willi Korte is surprised when he finds the loot from the Green Vault. After the burglary three years ago, he assumed that the perpetrators had already taken care of selling the loot before the crime and that it would therefore not be found again. “In that case, I was happy to be wrong in my opinion,” says the provenance researcher, who deals with art thefts that happened a long time ago. “I am surprised that the things were found in Berlin. I would have thought that they would have left Germany long ago.”
In his estimation, the loot should have survived the time since the theft well. “Since it’s mostly precious metals and stones, you don’t have to pay so much attention to the temperature,” says Korte. “I think things should still be in relatively good condition.” The valuable pieces are currently being examined. Experts check whether the 31 individual parts are genuine and complete and in what condition they are. In addition, the objects are also forensically examined.
The jewels and jewelry stolen three years ago were secured in Berlin on Saturday night. Information on the location and condition of the jewelry was not given with reference to the ongoing investigations. Apparently, the suspected thieves gave the investigators the hiding place. The find was preceded by “exploratory talks between the defense and the public prosecutor’s office, including the court, about a possible agreement on the procedure and the return of looted items that were still there,” said the police and the public prosecutor’s office.
A trial against six suspects for serious gang theft, arson and particularly serious arson has been underway in Dresden since the beginning of the year. The young men belong to the Arab Remmo clan from Berlin. One of the accused had already admitted in court that he was involved in the preparation but not in the coup itself. The next day of negotiations is next Tuesday. “Everything else is now reserved for the course of the main hearing before the Dresden Regional Court,” said Jürgen Schmidt, spokesman for the Dresden public prosecutor’s office.
There is an old rule when it comes to art theft, says Korte. “Stealing is easier than weaning.” He always saw the burglary as a jewel robbery rather than an art robbery. “I thought they would break out the jewels and sell them individually, not the art as a whole.” The results of investigations into jewel thieves are usually not very good. In the case of art theft, the investigative work is also difficult, but there are always cases in which the loot is sometimes only found years later.
The joy of the find is great. “The objects are to be assessed as irretrievable,” says the art theft expert. “You can’t replace something like that.” Now just hope that the rest of the loot shows up as well. “It would be nice if everything had been preserved.”
The burglary in the early morning of November 25, 2019 was one of the most spectacular art thefts in Germany. The perpetrators punched holes in a display case with an ax and ripped out the jewels. They stole pieces of jewelry with a total of 4,300 diamonds and brilliants with a total value of over 113 million euros. This was followed by a discussion about the safety precautions in the Dresden State Art Collections (SKD), which continues to this day.
