NEED TO KNOW
Two suspects broke into the Renoir Museum in France, stealing four paintings worth approximately $10.5 million
Police arrived within five minutes, causing the suspects to abandon two paintings while fleeing the scene
The mayor emphasized the need for stronger museum security to protect the town’s cultural heritage
Police are investigating a robbery after four paintings were stolen from the Renoir Museum in Cagnes-sur-Mer, France.
At around 5:48 a.m. local time on Tuesday, Sept. 8, two individuals entered the museum and stole four paintings from the Renoir collection. The suspects fled the scene after the alarm sounded, alerting the police, the town’s mayor, Bryan Masson, announced on Facebook.
The suspects allegedly broke into the museum gardens and “entered through the ground floor” of the venue. They left behind two of the stolen paintings while rushing to escape during the alarm, Masson said at a press conference, translated from French.
“A well-equipped and well-informed team broke into the Renoir Museum gardens,” he said. “They cut through a section of the fence and entered via the garden; the security system … was triggered, simultaneously alerting both the National Police and the Municipal Police.”
A police officer stands in front of the Renoir Museum after four paintings were stolen in Cagnes-sur-Mer, France, on Sept. 8
Credit: Valery HACHE / AFP via Getty
“The Municipal Police arrived in under five minutes,” Masson continued. “That brief window of time likely rattled the burglars… They fled through the gardens, apparently dropping two of the artworks in the process.”
Masson said the police’s short arrival time was “crucial” in preventing a larger theft. The suspects have not been caught.
While escaping, the individuals abandoned two of the stolen paintings “in the gardens of the Renoir Museum,” Masson told the French outlet Nice-Matin.
The stolen paintings from the twelve-piece collection include “Portrait of Madame Colonna Romano,” “Coco Lisant” and “Young Girl at the Well,” CBS News reported. The artworks are reportedly worth approximately $10.5 million altogether.
The suspects were allegedly wearing combat gear and carrying an electric knife and hacksaw, BBC reported.
“Portrait de Madame Colonna Romano” by Pierre Auguste Renoir from the Renoir collection
Credit: Alamy
In an update shared on Facebook on Tuesday, Masson confirmed that “two Renoir works are still being searched for.”
“Attacking the Renoir Museum is attacking a part of the history and heritage of #CagnesSurMer,” Masson said, per CBS News. “These events are particularly serious. They also confirm the urgent need to implement the comprehensive plan to secure our museums and protect our works of art, a plan to which I have committed.”
“We will dedicate all necessary resources to better protect this heritage, which belongs to all the residents of Cagnes,” he added.
The robbery follows the theft of another Renoir painting and two other works, including a Paul Cézanne and a Henri Matisse piece, by four masked men from the Magnani Rocca Foundation in Italy on March 22, PEOPLE previously reported. The paintings are worth over $10 million.
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PEOPLE has reached out to the Renoir Museum and Cagnes-sur-Mer Police for comment, but they did not immediately respond.
Read the original article on People