The British man was convicted Tuesday of stealing an 18-carat golden toilet that was on display as artwork at the birthplace of Winston Churchill.
A fully functional toilet, a work by Italian artist Maurizio Catheran entitled “America,” was stolen from the Churchills' seat at Blenheim Palace in southern England, a major tourist attraction and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Prosecutor Julian Christopher told the ju judge at the start of the trial last month that a group of five men drove two stolen wooden gates to the palace grounds before dawn on September 14, 2019.
This screenshot, made in the video, shows an 18-carat toilet entitled “America” by Maurizio Catterrand, located on September 16, 2016, in the toilet at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York. (AP photo)
On this day in history on October 29, 1964, the gem was stolen during the “Gemstone Robbery of the Century.”
They broke through the window, destroyed the wooden door, teared the toilets from the wall, and left five minutes after the building.
The 98 kg toilet was insured for $6 million. Prosecutors say it was split into small amounts of gold to sell it.
Michael Jones, 39, pleaded not guilty after being found guilty to robbery at Oxford Crown Court.
Fred Daw, 36, was found guilty of one count of a conspiracy to convert or transfer criminal property, namely money, while 41-year-old Mullah Gukkyuk was acquitted from the claim.
James Sheen, 39, pleaded guilty to the robber before trial, conspiring to convert or transfer money, and convert or transfer money.
James Sheen pleaded guilty before trial. (istock)
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In a statement, Shan Sanders of the Crown Prosecutor's Office said: “It was a bold, carefully planned and executed attack, but the person responsible for it was not careful and left a mark of evidence in the form of forensic medicine, CCTV footage and telephone data.”
Sanders added, “None of the money has been recovered… but I am confident that this prosecutor is involved in the wider crime and the disruption of the money laundering network.”
