On Tuesday, 3 men were convicted of stealing 483 gold Celtic coins from a museum in Manching, Germany, in 2022.
The theft occurred in November 2022 at the Kelten Römer Museum in Manching. The robbers, who numbered four, also disconnected communication lines (telephone and internet) for the entire city so that no one could alert the authorities. What they stole were 483 gold coins dating back to the 3rd century BCE. The coins were discovered during an archaeological expedition in Manching in 1999.
Last year, the four men were arrested in Northern Germany when the German police undertook a comprehensive search of the entire area, including homes, businesses, and vehicles. One of the men was found with a plastic bag containing gold coins. A closer inspection revealed that while these were not the same coins, they were indeed made using the same material. This confirmed that the robbers were only interested in the gold material of the coins, not their overall value. The coins had a market value of several million euros, while the total gold in them was only worth about €250,000. The authorities found out that 70 coins still remained missing.
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Further investigation linked the group to other robberies in Germany and Austria. The four men were tried in a court in Ingolstadt, which convicted all four. Three were convicted of the gold coin robbery in Manching; fourth one was acquitted of the act but convicted in another past robbery case. They were given prison sentences ranging from almost 5 years to 11 years.
