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Police operation at the Museum of East Asian Art: raid with backpack
Photo: Roberto Pfeil / dpa
Burglars have stolen valuable porcelain from the Museum of East Asian Art in Cologne. The total value of the loot is in the millions, as reported by the »Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger« and the dpa news agency, among others. According to initial findings, the strangers stole nine pieces of artistic porcelain from showcases during the burglary on Wednesday night, a police spokeswoman said.
As the authority further announced, the perpetrators pried open a window of the museum. An employee of the museum heard loud noises at the front of the building around midnight and became aware of the burglary. He had seen two men, one of whom is said to have carried a gray square backpack. The perpetrators are on the run. The police are looking for witnesses.
The city of Cologne initially only stated that during a break-in at the Museum of East Asian Art, unknown persons stole several exhibits. Further details were to be announced in the late afternoon at a press conference with the alderman for arts and culture, Stefan Charles, and museum director Shao-Lan Hertel.
The Museum of East Asian Art was founded in 1913 and claims to be the first museum of its kind in Europe. In addition to the Museum of Asian Art in Berlin, it houses the most important collection of art from China, Korea and Japan in Germany.
mxw/dpa