Violent Museum Thefts on the Rise, Europol Report Warns

Thefts from museums are becoming increasingly violent and targeting high-value items to meet strong demand from the criminal market, according to a newly published report from Europol.

The report, shared earlier this week by the official European agency for law enforcement co-operation, revealed that thieves are “adopting more direct and confrontational approaches” to their operations, increasingly using violence during targeted attacks and opening display cases with weapons including axes, crowbars and explosives. 

“In some cases,” the report said, “offenders use firearms to intimidate security personnel and visitors. Some museum thefts have involved direct physical assaults on staff such as tying them up or using brute force against them.”

In November 2024, four hooded thieves armed with axes and baseball bats stole snuff-boxes valued at around €1 million from the Cognacq-Jay Museum in Paris. In January the following year, Dacian artefacts—including the Golden Helmet of Coțofenești and three golden bracelets—were stolen from the Dutch Drents Museum in Assen after explosives were detonated at the institution’s door.

Evidence from Europol member states suggests that thieves are focusing on specific categories of cultural artefacts, such as Chinese porcelain, which is in demand on the global art market. Also popular are precious metals, which can be melted down and broken up to resell. 

According to the report, the use of force has also been closely linked to targeted operations, suggesting both prior identification of specific objects and pre-planned execution.

The traditional profile of the “art thief” has also changed, with sector specialists and established networks being replaced by robbery-to-order recruitment, in which criminals with a history of involvement in other kinds of illegal activity are being hired—through local social media or messaging apps—in order to execute specific operations.

This latter practice was evidenced in the 2025 Louvre heist, during which jewellery worth an estimated €88 million was stolen by thieves who drove a hoist up to a window before breaking into the Apollo Gallery and smashing display cases with angle-grinders. 

The robbery’s suspects claim they were recruited days before the theft and promised around €20,000 each by an unnamed mastermind. One suspect has also claimed not to have known that he would be stealing from the Louvre, instead believing he would be breaking into a jewellery store.

Europol has claimed some success in beating the criminals, citing a November 2025 operation that dismantled a network which had been trafficking gold and silver coins and other antiquities. The agency set up a task force that uncovered the links between individuals based in different countries and helped to locate additional pieces suspected to have been trafficked by the network.