Authorities told Reuters Tuesday about the recovery at a church in Encino of a valuable Rembrandt that has been stolen from a hotel in the Los Angeles area.
Los Angeles County Police Department spokesman Steve Whitmore said the 11 x 16 inch-pen and ink drawing, known as “The Judgment”, was verified by its owner Linearis Institute as the original artwork which was stolen Saturday night from an exhibit.
The investigators were led to the church Monday night by an anonymous tip. There are no suspects or even an explanation as to how the $250,000-drawing ended up at the Ventura Boulevard church which is 25 miles from Los Angeles.
The drawing was in “a building on the church grounds, not in the sanctuary,” Whitmore said. It wasn’t hanging on a wall or otherwise displayed, he said.
“We got an anonymous tip because there was so much news coverage,” Whitmore told Reuters. “That really was the turning point. The news coverage led people to call us and say, ‘Hey, I’ve seen this, and this is where I’ve seen it.’ We responded, and they were right. There it was.”
Whitmore said the theft of the drawing by 17th-century Dutch painter Rembrandt van Rijn, happened while a person who “appeared to be buying something and that required the attention of the curator” distracted the curator.
“As the curator turned away from the exhibit momentarily and then turned back, he saw that the Rembrandt was gone.”
The hotel’s security video is being scoured by high-tech specialists even as Whitmore said that a sketch or stills of the suspects may be released by the authorities later this week or next week.
Stolen Rembrandt found in Encino church building
Authorities told Reuters Tuesday about the recovery at a church in Encino of a valuable Rembrandt that has been stolen from a hotel in the Los Angeles area.
Los Angeles County Police Department spokesman Steve Whitmore said the 11 x 16 inch-pen and ink drawing, known as “The Judgment”, was verified by its owner Linearis Institute as the original artwork which was stolen Saturday night from an exhibit.
The investigators were led to the church Monday night by an anonymous tip. There are no suspects or even an explanation as to how the $250,000-drawing ended up at the Ventura Boulevard church which is 25 miles from Los Angeles.
The drawing was in “a building on the church grounds, not in the sanctuary,” Whitmore said. It wasn’t hanging on a wall or otherwise displayed, he said.
“We got an anonymous tip because there was so much news coverage,” Whitmore told Reuters. “That really was the turning point. The news coverage led people to call us and say, ‘Hey, I’ve seen this, and this is where I’ve seen it.’ We responded, and they were right. There it was.”
Whitmore said the theft of the drawing by 17th-century Dutch painter Rembrandt van Rijn, happened while a person who “appeared to be buying something and that required the attention of the curator” distracted the curator.
“As the curator turned away from the exhibit momentarily and then turned back, he saw that the Rembrandt was gone.”
The hotel’s security video is being scoured by high-tech specialists even as Whitmore said that a sketch or stills of the suspects may be released by the authorities later this week or next week.
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