Thieves who stole 2,500-year-old gold relics from museum sentenced

Three men were each sentenced to 47 months in prison on Friday for the theft of an ornate Romanian gold helmet and bracelets in a raid on a Dutch museum. The Northern Netherlands District Court said the three men, whose identities were not released in line with privacy rules, warranted a custodial sentence "because of the nature and gravity" of their crime. The robbers used explosives to force open a door during the overnight heist in January last year, the Drents Museum previously said . Security video distributed by police after the raid appeared to show three people opening a museum door with a large crowbar, followed by an explosion. This photograph shows a close-up view of the recovered golden helmet of Cotofenesti during its presentation to the press at the Drents Museum in Assen April 2, 2026. Sem van der Wal/ANP/AFP via Getty Images The Cotofenesti helmet and three golden bracelets — some of Romania's most revered national treasures from the Dacia civilization — were stolen from the Drents Museum while they were on loan for an exhibition. At the time, the museum's general director called it "a dark day" for the institution. …