Overview
- The defendants, ages 56, 62 and 67, are charged with 74 offenses including commercial theft and dealing in stolen cultural property.
- Investigators allege the 67-year-old organized the thefts, the 62-year-old scouted locations, and the 56-year-old handled resale.
- Targets included bronze sculptures from Berlin cemeteries and parks with additional incidents beyond the capital, such as Hamburg and Mecklenburg‑Vorpommern.
- Authorities value the stolen works at more than €411,000, citing pieces linked to artists Ruthild Hahne and Heinrich Drake among the losses.
- A citizen tip sparked the probe, May searches recovered bronze figures, stone sculptures and historic fence elements, and the accused remain free pending trial.