Police said that a group of researchers and detectives from around the world working on the case think that the theft was done by a well-known gang from the Balkans that has been linked to several other thefts. Sources close to the investigation told the Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf that the gang is the well-known Pink Panthers. Since 2001, the Pink Panthers have stolen diamonds and jewelry in many places around the world, including Dubai, Tokyo, and Greece. The gang is known for using tricks that look like they came from a movie. For example, one of the first Pink Panther movies used a trick with a jar of face cream. Experts say there could be anywhere from 30 to 800 people in the gang, but we don't know much about how they work together.
Arthur Brand, who is Dutch and often helps the police with art crime investigations, said that he had always thought the Pink Panthers were up to no good. "They stole at TEFAF in the middle of the day, so you have to wonder who would be so brave." Brand said. "Well, the Pink Panthers are known for their daring robberies." In fact, stealing from TEFAF might have been one of the Pink Panthers' easiest heists. When they got to the fair, they walked in wearing newsboy hats. They used a heavy object to break open cases from the British jewel company Symbolic & Chase, and then they rode away on electric scooters. In other heists, expensive cars were driven into buildings and the thieves got away on fast boats.
No matter how smart the thieves were, they probably got away with diamonds worth about $25 million. But one of the diamonds has already been found. In a press release, an investigator said, "It was not the famous big yellow diamond." "But now that this piece of jewelry has been found, the investigation can move forward in a big way." Brand thought that the diamond might have been lost during the escape or given up by a suspicious diamond jeweler. But the fact that they can split up these valuable items is exactly why the Pink Panthers are more interested in stealing jewels than art. "It's easier to sell a few diamonds than a Van Gogh," said Brand. "They have a whole network of people who can cut these diamonds down, and then no one recognizes them and that's it."
Selena Mattei