Thieves made off with what local media estimated to be more than $1 billion worth of jewels from the Green Vault museum in Dresden, Germany.
It’s believed that the culprits set a fire nearby to trigger a power outage, then entered the building through a window that they broke, Bloomberg reports. Two thieves broke a display case and grabbed the artifacts.
Among the items taken were a “diamond-encrusted dagger, pearl necklace, and dozens of other glittering artifacts,” according to Bloomberg. The jewels were not insured.
The stolen items comprise “three sets of 18th-century jewellery of ‘immeasurable worth,'” The Guardian reports.
The heist took place before 5 a.m. last Monday.
The Green Vault, or Grüne Gewölbe, is one of Europe’s oldest museums, according to The Guardian.
Read more at Bloomberg
