It begins with an elegant launch party at Blenheim Palace, Britain's equivalent to Versailles, in September 2019. When the clinking of champagne glasses has subsided and darkness has fallen over the UNESCO World Heritage-listed building, the thieves strike.
On surveillance footage, two stolen cars can be seen driving up to the entrance and five masked individuals rushing in. Shortly afterwards, they disappear with the pièce de résistance of the evening's festivities – the artwork "America", a fully functional toilet in solid gold, on loan from the Guggenheim Museum in New York.
Only days later, the loo, weighing 98 kilos and insured for a value of 60 million kronor, has been dismantled and sold on, according to the BBC. The gold has never been recovered.
Three men have now been found guilty of involvement in the heist, including the alleged mastermind. The man's DNA was found on a hammer left behind at the palace and in his home, clothes with gold fragments were discovered.
Another man is believed to have planned the break-in and a third for being involved in selling the gold on. The latter is said to have been contacted by the alleged leader through a series of coded messages.
The men's sentences will be announced at a later date.
