CLERMONT-FERRAND, FRANCE.- The Associated Press has reported that French police have “cracked a ring of art traffickers who broke into chateaus and made off with art, jewels and period furniture, arresting 60 suspects across France and Belgium, a prosecutor said Friday.”

The case began back in December 2003 and involved over 390 investigators after 50 break-ins all suing the same method
The Associated Press reported that “Thirty-nine of the thefts occurred in the lush, mountainous Puy-de-Dome region where Clermont-Ferrand is located, and most of the suspects come from the same family, said Michel Valet, criminal court prosecutor in this city in central France.”
Mr. Valet said,” the thieves stole the goods, stocked them and then resold them to antique dealers in France, Belgium and Germany. Some specialized in bronzes, others in paintings or furniture.

The associated press went on to report that “officers seized some 500 stolen works and furniture — including a Louis XVI chandelier — as well as nearly $2.7 million in cash and savings.”

“Of the 60 arrested, 19 have been placed under investigation — a step short of being charged — and 17 have been jailed”, he said to the Associated Press.