Stolen Pablo Picasso and Marc Chagall paintings recovered from Antwerp basement
Police recently recovered paintings by Pablo Picasso and Marc Chagall during a search of a basement in Antwerp.
The paintings, Picasso’s 1971 piece Tête and Chagall’s 1970 piece L’homme en prière, were stolen from an art collector’s home in Tel Aviv. Since the 2010 theft, the combined value of the artworks reached nearly $1million.
Belgian authorities were tipped off that someone in Namur was trying to sell them after being presumed lost in the 14 years since.
Police tracked the suspect, described in a statement as a 68-year-old Israeli watch dealer, in a covert operation for six months, and was eventually traced to a residence in the city. Searching his home found only large sums of money and no paintings.
“The checks and police resources implemented during 2023 made it possible to establish that the suspect was indeed in possession of the works sought and that he could have them at his home or the home of one of his relations,” Belgian authorities said in a statement given to Belgian outlet Le Soir.
Although the suspect eventually confessed to owning the stolen paintings, he used to comment on their whereabouts. A subsequent investigation led them to the Antwerp residence, where the paintings were found in a basement.
The rare works recovered were undamaged and still in their original frames. The separate $680,000 worth of jewellery also stolen from the collector in the same heist remains missing.