How a daring burglar stole an artwork worth $4.5M in public without being seen by security guards or bystanders

Unseen by security guards or bystanders, a daring burglar took advantage of the fireworks display scheduled to mark the onset of a new millennium, starting at midnight on January 1, 2000 to enter within the “secure” confines of the Ashmolean Museum at Britain’s Oxford University.

The thief approached through a construction site adjoining the museum, then scaled an outer wall and made his (or her) way across the roof. Smashing through a glass skylight, the thief dropped a smoke grenade that achieved the double benefit of blinding museum security cameras and triggering fire alarms to create more confusion.

The Library and the artwork

Within 10 minutes, the burglar escaped with one painting, a Paul Cézanne landscape titled Auvers-sur-Oise, valued at £3 million (approximately $4.5 million). Museum security personnel only discovered the theft after firefighters had searched the facility and found the smoke grenade.

Cézanne’s masterpiece remains missing today, and no suspects have yet been named in the case.