According to several sources in the Netherlands, the theft of the priceless Golden Helmet of Coțofenești and three golden bracelets — irreplaceable Romanian archaeological treasures – was committed at the behest of the Romanian underworld.
Dutch media outlet RTL Nieuws spoke with police investigators close to the investigation as well as to people in the criminal sphere. They were told the artwork was stolen to be used as a bargaining chip for a Romanian criminal to stay out of jail.
It was believed a motor gang recruited the thieves to rob the Dacian treasure.
This raised hopes with investigators the valuable 2,500-year-old helmet still was intact, and not melted to obtain its value in gold, as some feared.
“Indications are piling up that the helmet was not melted down,” a source close to the police investigation told RTL Nieuws.
It is likely the helmet is still in the Netherlands. “It is probably somewhere near Heerhugowaard rolled in a towel,” the same source added.
Another source told the news outlet that during the robbery the thieves dropped the artwork which was insured for €5.8 million, though its true cultural and historical value is impossible to quantify.
The motorcycle club in question was founded in 2019 by former members of the banned Hells Angels while in jail.
Over the years, its members have been convicted of various criminal offences, including extortion, arson, and assault. In March 2024, a court officially banned the motorcycle club.
Dutch police have already made several arrests, believing all the people were involved with the case
It was believed that members of the club recruited the thieves at €15,000 per person, with one of the suspected thieves being a prospect, hoping to join the motor gang.
Although police are also keeping other avenues of investigation open, “there is an increasing focus on a Romanian client”, RTL Nieuws quoted a source.
That Romanian reportedly wanted to return the treasure in exchange for a reduction or remission of his sentence.
However, the Dutch public prosecutor did not want to confirm the reporting.
“There is nothing to say about whether there was a principal. We therefore leave your suggestions and assertions, based on sources, entirely to your account”, the prosecutor told the reporters.
The Romanian Prosecutor General, Alex Florenta, later admitted the connection with the Romanian underworld was a real trail.
A lawyer of one of the suspected thieves said the reporting offered “new information” and added his client “did not recognise himself” in the story.
Another lawyer said it was “interesting” but refused to offer any further comment.
The robbery took place January 25, when art thieves used dynamite to break through a reinforced concrete wall of the Drents Museum in the city of Assen, damaging other buildings in the neighbourhood.
Priceless Romanian works of art and national treasures were stolen from a temporary exhibition titled Dacia – Empire of gold and silver.
The star piece was the Golden Helmet of Coțofenești, a well-preserved pure gold Geto-Dacian helmet from the 5th Century BC, weighing almost 1kg.
Alongside that, three gold bracelets from the Sarmizegetusa region in Romania were also stolen by the thieves.
In Romania, the news has been treated as a national disaster.
