The mystery of the 673 diamonds: a dramatic manhunt for the suspects in the great Vienna robbery

Austrian police are searching for two men suspected of stealing a platinum necklace set with 673 diamonds, with a total weight of 200 carats, from a museum in Vienna.

The robbery took place in broad daylight last week, during hours when the museum was open to the public. According to a report in The Guardian, the two suspects entered the museum after purchasing tickets and arrived at the scene around 14:00. One of them, it is suspected, pulled out a weapon, while the other used a hammer to smash the glass display case in which the jewelry was exhibited.

The two fled the scene in an unknown direction. The police launched extensive searches and published photos of the suspects that same day, requesting the public to provide any information that might assist in locating them.

The necklace was displayed as part of the "Glanzstücke" exhibition, which features about 500 items. According to reports, the jewelry was created by the French jewelry house Van Cleef & Arpels for the Egyptian royal family, and it is valued at more than 3.5 million euros — about 14 million shekels.

The museum stated that security measures were thoroughly checked ahead of the exhibition's opening, especially in light of a series of serious incidents that have occurred in recent years in major museums in Europe.

Wave of museum thefts

The robbery in Vienna joins a series of sophisticated thefts from museums across Europe. Among other things, a gold collection from the Bronze Age known as the "Treasure of Villena" was stolen from a museum in Spain in an operation that lasted only about four minutes and is considered particularly fast and professional. According to reports, several vehicles arrived at the scene and the burglars likely entered through a window.

In other cases, paintings by the Italian painter Antonello da Messina were stolen from a museum in Sicily, and in another case, the police managed to locate three French works of art that disappeared in March from a private museum in the Italian city of Parma.

The Louvre Museum in Paris was also the target of a significant robbery. Last October, jewelry worth 88 million euros — about 348 million shekels — was stolen from it.

Thefts from museums in Europe have become more violent in recent years. Burglars use jackhammers, axes, iron bars, and even explosives to break into buildings and display cases. In some cases, weapons are also used to threaten security guards and visitors.

The targets are also changing. Instead of just works of art, criminals are increasingly focusing on precious metals, gemstones, and Chinese cultural items. It is estimated that the reason for this is that metals can be melted down, thereby erasing their origin, and gemstones can be removed from jewelry and sold separately.

"Crime as a service"

A report by Europol, the European Union agency for law enforcement cooperation, published on August 24, pointed to another development: new criminals are recruited through social networks and offer hacking and theft services for a fee — a model known as "crime as a service."

According to the report, cited in The Epoch Times, a series of thefts of jewelry and cultural items points to pre-planned actions rather than random looting. Among other things, porcelain plates from the 12th and 13th centuries, jugs from the Ming Dynasty, and enamel-coated bronze vases from the Ming and Qing periods in China were mentioned.

France has dealt with similar cases in recent years. In 2015, thieves broke into the Chinese Museum at the Château de Fontainebleau, southeast of Paris, and fled within about seven minutes with about 15 items. Among other things, the crown of the King of Siam and an enamel-coated chimera statue from the reign of Emperor Qianlong were stolen.

The items stolen in 2015 have not been found to this day, and according to reports, those responsible for the break-in have not been identified either. In December 2019, French authorities thwarted another attempt to break into the museum. Five Spanish citizens and one Chinese citizen were arrested near the castle and were suspected of conspiracy to commit a crime and organized theft.

A French police officer specializing in the field told Le Journal du Dimanche that he estimates a Chinese trio was behind the operation and that the stolen items cannot be sold on the legitimate art market and were therefore, it is suspected, intended for smuggling to China. During the investigation, two photos were also found on the Chinese suspect's phone, showing items stolen in the 2015 raid.

The gold also disappeared

In September 2025, three Chinese porcelain items were stolen from the Adrien Dubouché National Museum in the city of Limoges, France. The items were defined as national cultural assets, and since the theft, no trace of them has been found. Less than two weeks later, a lone thief broke into the National Museum of Natural History in Paris and stole almost 6 kg of gold nuggets.

The country's prosecution estimated the value of the loot at about 1.5 million euros — about 6 million shekels. Experts cited in The Epoch Times claimed that the cases point to the activity of organized crime groups, and that Chinese criminal networks are operating in the field across Europe and using cultural items as part of mechanisms for laundering large sums of money.