An international manhunt has been launched for two men who allegedly stole a platinum and diamond necklace worth more than US$4 million from a museum in Vienna after entering the exhibition as visitors.
The suspects reportedly smashed a glass display case at the Vienna Museum of Applied Arts (MAK) on Thursday afternoon before taking the valuable necklace, which is adorned with more than 600 diamonds.
Police said one of the men was believed to be carrying what appeared to be a real firearm during the incident. The pair, who were not wearing masks, were captured on security cameras before fleeing towards Vienna Stadtpark, south of the museum.
Authorities have released photographs of the suspects and are appealing to members of the public for information. Police dog units have also been deployed in Vienna and Lower Austria, while forensic teams are examining evidence and CCTV recordings.
The stolen necklace was created by French luxury jeweller Van Cleef & Arpels for the former Egyptian royal family. It formed part of an exhibition dedicated to the jewellery house, which was scheduled to remain at MAK until September.
The more than 200-carat necklace was famously worn by Queen Nazli in 1939 during the wedding of her daughter, Princess Fawzia, to Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, who later became Shah of Iran.
Van Cleef & Arpels has described the piece as a “triumph of white jewellery”. When it was auctioned about a decade ago, its estimated value was between US$3.6 million and US$4.6 million.
MAK general director Lilli Hollein said the museum was deeply affected by the theft and stressed that security arrangements had been carefully prepared with Van Cleef & Arpels for the exhibition.
She said museum staff remained calm during the incident and followed established procedures, adding that no one was injured despite what was described as an armed incident.
The theft has added to growing concerns over security at European museums following a series of high-profile robberies in recent years.
On the same day, a collection of prehistoric jewellery and artefacts was reportedly stolen from a museum in Spain. Other recent incidents include the theft of four Renaissance paintings from a museum in Sicily and three works by Renoir, Cézanne and Matisse from a museum in Parma.
The incidents follow last October’s high-profile Louvre robbery in Paris, where a masked gang stole valuable jewels in a daylight raid.
Europol has warned that museum thefts are becoming increasingly aggressive, with criminals turning to more violent and forceful methods, potentially signalling the involvement of new criminal networks.
Despite the theft, the MAK exhibition reopened later on Friday without the missing necklace as investigations continued.
