Authorities in Queensland, Australia, have taken into custody a man believed to be involved in the theft of valuable Egyptian artifacts from a museum near Brisbane.
The 52-year-old suspect was arrested on Saturday on Russell Island in Moreton Bay after police found a portion of the stolen items in a camper van parked at a ferry terminal. Among the recovered artifacts is a remarkable 2,600-year-old wooden cat figure from Egypt's 26th Dynasty, the last dynasty governed by a native Egyptian pharaoh before the Persian invasion.
Within just two days of the crime, police arrested the suspect and successfully returned most of the artifacts to the Abbey Museum of Art and Archaeology in Caboolture. Investigators revealed that the suspect broke in through a smashed window that faced the museum's ancient Egyptian exhibition, in what they described as a daring act reminiscent of high-profile art heists.
The stolen collection also included a 3,300-year-old necklace and a mummy mask, which were later found inside the camper wrapped in a Venezuelan flag. Fortunately, both items have been recovered with only minor damage.
The suspect was charged with breaking and entering, as well as three counts of willful damage.
