Stolen Romanian golden helmet found: Dutch art sleuth to AFP

THE HAGUE:A priceless gold 2,500-year-old helmet from Romania that was stolen last year in the Netherlands has been recovered, Dutch art detective Arthur Brand told AFP on Thursday.

"It's amazing. It's the best news we could have got," said Brand, confirming that the lost Helmet of Cotofenesti had been found.

Prosecutors are expected to make an official announcement later on Thursday.

A gang of robbers used firework bombs to break into the Drents Museum in the northern Netherlands in January 2025, and smashed display cases once inside.

They made off with the 5th-century BC golden Helmet of Cotofenesti and three gold bracelets.

Three men are on trial for the theft but have largely remained silent in court.

Brand said he and police have been working their contacts to persuade the alleged robbers to hand over the helmet in exchange for a more lenient punishment.

"We were pretty sure it had not been melted down because there were only four days between the robbery and the arrests," said Brand.

"It's a fantastic job by the Dutch police."

Under huge pressure from Romania, Dutch authorities have made multiple attempts to convince the suspects to tell them where the treasures are stashed.

Police offered to halve the sentence of one suspect if he revealed the location of the helmet.

An undercover officer posing as a criminal mastermind reportedly offered another suspect 400,000 euros ($420,000) to tell him where the booty was hidden.

Police have also offered a reward of 100,000 euros for information leading to the helmet's recovery.

- 'People are devastated' -

The theft and the search for the Dacian artefacts regularly make headline news in the Netherlands and sparked outrage in Romania, where the items are considered national treasures.

The then Romanian prime minister Marcel Ciolacu voiced "outrage that priceless objects" had been stolen and was considering claiming "unprecedented damages".

"You have no idea what the impact of this is on the Romanian community," Romanian cultural journalist Claudia Marcu, who has lived in the Netherlands since 2003, told public broadcaster NOS.

"When I heard about the theft I thought: for the Dutch this would be like (Rembrandt's) 'The Night Watch' being stolen. People are devastated."

The Dutch government had set aside 5.7 million euros ($6.5 million) for a likely payout following the brazen theft.

The pieces were on loan from a Bucharest museum, whose head was promptly sacked for lending the works out in the first place.