1689865063 Celtic treasure stolen in Germany Four suspects arrested and accused

Celtic treasure stolen in Germany: Four suspects arrested and accused of melting down some of the gold

Four Germans have been arrested in connection with the daredevil theft of a rare batch of Celtic gold coins from a Bavarian museum in November, some of which may have been melted down, authorities said on Thursday.

Four men aged 42 to 50, who have long been suspected of being burglars, were arrested on Wednesday, July 19, after searches of their homes in Schwerin, Mecklenburg-West Pomerania, in north-eastern Germany, authorities said on Thursday a press conference in Munich.

The coins and pure gold stolen from the Manchinger Museum were the largest Celtic gold find of the 20th century. Some pieces found in 1999 date back to around 100 years BC. date. The entire treasure, the market value of which is estimated at around 1.6 million euros, has not yet been found and “the search continues”, he added.

70 Pieces “Seemingly Lost Forever”

Part of the loot was irretrievably destroyed: 18 nuggets, which probably consisted of 4 melted parts – perhaps to make them easier to sell – were seized during searches, according to the authorities. About 70 of the total of 483 pieces are “apparently lost forever”, complained the Bavarian Minister of Art Markus Blume, who described the theft as an “attack on our cultural memory”. “The hope remains to discover intact parts,” he added, hoping for clues from the suspects. However, the latter did not comment at this time. They face prison sentences of between one and ten years for “serious theft in an organized gang”.

The police are looking for the Celtic treasure in July 2023 in Schwerin, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania in north-eastern Germany.  (JENS BUTTNER / DPA / AFP)

The police are looking for the Celtic treasure in July 2023 in Schwerin, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania in north-eastern Germany. (JENS BUTTNER / DPA / AFP)

Police first investigated previous cases in German museums, including a spectacular diamond theft in Dresden in late 2019 and a 100-kilogram gold coin in Berlin in 2017, to see if it was the same team. A criminal gang of Lebanese origin, which was very active in Germany and called the Remmo clan, was involved in these two crimes.

In the museum robbery in Manching, the suspects, two of whom had previous convictions, were identified using DNA evidence that the police captured at the crime scene. The authorities found that at least three of them were probably also involved in eleven previously unsolved burglaries between March 2014 and September 2022 in shops and a casino in Germany and Austria.