The attackers smashed some armored display cases with hammers to seize the valuable jewelery of a British exhibitor
The Maastricht European Fine Arts Fair (TEFAF), the most important art, antiques and jewelery competition in the world, was canceled on Tuesday after the spectacular armed robbery of extremely valuable pieces by one of its exhibitors, the London jeweler Symbolic & Chase. After the eviction, the Dutch police confirmed that they had arrested two suspects in the violent attack, two young Belgians aged 26 and 22, while two other suspects remained on the run.
“We have received a report of an armed robbery at TEFAF by four people,” the province of Limburg said in a statement on the website of the national police. “No one was injured, but the thieves got their loot,” they confirmed.
Footage from a video posted on social media shows four smartly dressed men, one of whom was armed with a sledgehammer, smashing several jewelry display cases. One of the attackers was found to be holding a gun and pointing it at a person who tried to intervene. After the jewels were put in a bag, the thieves ran out of the congress palace that houses the fairground to the noise of the alarms and without security personnel appearing on the video.
Opened to the general public last Saturday, TEFAF is held annually in Maastricht, in the south of the Netherlands, and showcases tens of thousands of classical and contemporary works of art, antiques and jewelery spanning 7,000 years. Every year, almost 250 gallery owners, antique dealers and jewelers meet and the fair attracts about 75,000 visitors. TEFAF is celebrating its 35th edition this year, after a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic.
In a statement, TEFAF confirmed that those in attendance had been evacuated at 11:30 am due to an “incident”. “The exchange’s security team acted quickly to disarm the criminal and the police were on the scene within minutes. No one was injured,” the organization said.
“Strict security protocols were put in place,” said an event spokesperson. “TEFAF has robust procedures in place in the event of a security breach. These were closely monitored and all visitors, exhibitors and staff were safely evacuated. The exchange has reopened its doors and is cooperating with the authorities. No statements will be made about this in the future,” the incident said.
TEFAF has had to deal with thefts on a number of occasions in the past. In 2011, they took jewelry of an unspecified value and the year before, the thieves stole a ring and pendant worth 860,000 euros. In 2008, a diamond necklace worth 1.2 million euros disappeared.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
