Australian Man Charged for 'Amateurish' Heist of Egyptian Artifacts

A 52-year-old Australian man has been arrested and charged after an "amateurish" and "opportunistic" break-in at an archaeology museum, officials say.

Priceless Artifacts Stolen in 'Opportunistic' Heist

The robbery occurred last Friday, Feb. 13, just after 3 a.m. local time, when the unidentified suspect broke into the Abbey Museum of Art and Archaeology, located north of Brisbane in Caboolture. The alleged thief gained access to the museum through a window and proceeded to plunder a number of items from a display of Egyptian artifacts. Amongst the pieces stolen were an intricately carved wooden mummy mask; a neck adornment; a 3,300-year-old necklace; and a 2,600-year-old figurine depicting a cat. 

At around 1:30 on Saturday afternoon, Queensland police located the vehicle of interest parked in a ferry terminal. In the van, authorities found the stolen items “relatively undamaged,” with footage of the arrest appearing to show the mummy mask wrapped in a Venezuelan flag. Detective Inspector David Harbison slammed the suspect as “quite amateurish,” adding that police quickly ruled out the involvement of organized crime in the “opportunistic” heist. "We established a person of interest and a vehicle of interest fairly quickly," Harbison added.

Museum Staff Commended Quick, Careful Work of Police

The suspect has been charged with breaking and entering as well as several counts of willful damage. Museum staff confirmed that, in addition to the stolen items, multiple objects were damaged during the heist. These artifacts included a ring and a ushabti (also spelled shabti), a type of funerary figurine which is buried with the deceased, intended to serve them in the afterlife.

"We're just really thankful to the Queensland police for how fast that was actioned and how diligent they were,” said Abbey Museum manager Nina Pye. Senior curator Michael Strong commended the sure and steady hand of authorities, who returned the “incredibly delicate” items in surprisingly good condition. "I had expected to see from the way they were being handled and the tools used to extract them that they would be smashed beyond repair," said Strong. Strong added that, had any of the items been significantly damaged, they would have been nearly impossible to mend.

This “amateurish” theft follows hot on the heels of similarly assured, though decidedly more successful, heists across Europe. Last October, the nation was captivated by the daring daylight Louvre heist in which thieves disguised as construction workers broke into the iconic Parisian museum and snatched priceless jewelry. Earlier this month, footage was captured of a team of thieves using explosives to disable an armored car in a similarly harrowing daytime robbery, making off with bags of cash and leading police on a dangerous car chase.