$1B jewelry heist in Germany: How thieves may have pulled it off
Burglars might get a payday from the museum, former prominent jewel thief says
Burglars getting away with over $1 billion in jewels stolen from a Germany museum is like “somebody robbing the Vatican,” Larry Lawton said.
Lawton, who was once known as the biggest jewel thief in America, joined FOX Business’ “Cavuto: Coast to Coast” on Tuesday to analyze the crime, which is being dubbed “the biggest jewelry heist ever.”
Jewel of the Polish White Eagle Order stolen from the Green Vault in Dresden, Germany. (Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden/Juergen Karpinski via AP)
Lawton, who has since turned his life around and is now a motivational speaker who works with the police, discussed what a huge endeavor it will be for these thieves to make a profit off the stolen jewels they took from Dresden’s Green Vault.
DRESDEN JEWEL HEIST: THIEVES HACK THEIR WAY INTO MUSEUM'S 'PRICELESS' DISPLAY
"Obviously, they have to break it up. There are too many signature pieces."
Epee of the Diamond Rose set stolen from the Green Vault in Dresden, Germany. (Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden/Juergen Karpinski via AP)
Lawton said the thieves might even get a payday from the museum.
“This museum would offer them $50 million, $100 million just to get back these artifacts, and no questions asked,” he said.
Collection at the Jewelry Room of Dresden's Green Vault in Dresden. (Sebastian Kahnert/dpa via AP)
'PRICELESS' JEWELRY STOLEN FROM GERMANY'S DRESDEN MUSEUM
The police will never admit it, Lawton said, but under the table, the authorities and museum will often pay to get stolen items back because artifacts like these are so valuable, historically, culturally and monetarily. That means the burglars could "get away with it," Lawton said.
When asked who could get away with this, Lawton said the profile of criminals who could do this is "highly intelligent, highly social."
Photo of Breast Star of the Polish White Eagle Order stolen from the Green Vault in Dresden, Germany. (Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden/Juergen Karpinski via AP)
He pointed to the infamous European “Pink Panther Gang” as the possible culprits due to the brazen nature of the crime.
"It's got the M.O. of the Pink Panthers," Lawton said.
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Collection at Silver Gilt Room, Silbervergoldete Zimmer, inside Dresden's Green Vault in Dresden. (Sebastian Kahnert/dpa via AP)
“They planned this for at the minimum six months,” Lawton said, explaining with a heist like this, a thief can’t just case a joint once or twice.
Lawton speculated it may have even been an inside job.
“How did they know that there wasn't bulletproof glass?” he said. "You only know that either by having inside information or being in there enough or talk[ing] to a curator.”
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