On September 8, 2024, two oil paintings by Auguste Renoir, 'Madame Colonna Romano' and 'Jeune femme au puits', were stolen from the Renoir Museum in Cagnes-sur-Mer.
The theft took less than three minutes. The perpetrators sliced through a fence and climbed through a window to enter the museum. Initially, they took four Renoir paintings.
The two Renoir paintings, recently stolen from a museum in southern France, have been found. Great work by the French Police. https://t.co/tPwDkt2Yv7
Two of the paintings were later abandoned by the thieves as they fled.
Six people were arrested across southern and eastern France, including two suspected thieves.
The investigation was led by the Marseille prosecutor's office. Six people were arrested across southern and eastern France, including two suspected thieves.
The recovery comes amid ongoing concerns about security in French museums, following a high-profile jewelry heist at the Louvre in Paris nearly a year ago, in which jewelry worth about 100 million dollars was stolen.
Mayor Bryan Masson welcomed the recovery, saying the paintings are part of the city's history and heritage, and that their return is an immense relief.