Episode 8: Recovering stolen heritage

In 2017, an organised crime group from Eastern Europe pulled off a string of robberies in warehouses up and down the UK. The spree ended with their biggest heist, as they stole a stash of rare antiquarian books worth over EUR 2 million. The goods were valuable in more than just monetary terms; they held immense cultural value as well. And when cultural goods are stolen, the best hopes at getting them back come through international police cooperation.

In this episode, find out how Europol worked with British, Italian and Romanian authorities to track down the large and sophisticated gang behind this robbery. From the night of the heist to the years-long manhunt for the kingpin, you’ll hear from the officers who worked this immense case, and how they worked to recover stolen heritage.

This is the eighth and final episode in the first series of the Europol podcast. Be sure to subscribe and follow Europol on social media to be notified about when future episodes are released.

Speakers:

• Andy Durham, The London Metropolitan Police
• Luigi Lubello, Italian Carabinieri
• Tiberius Manea, National Police of Romania (Poliția Română)

Europol Specialists:

• Luigi Mancuso, European Serious and Organised Crime Centre

Links:

• Europol Press Release: Book thieves - 15 suspects arrested in Romania and the United Kingdom (26 June 2019)
• Europol Press Release: Romanian kingpin of rare book thieves behind bars thanks to Italy (28 January 2020)
• Europol Press Release: Rare books recovered in Romania in €2 million London warehouse heist investigation (18 September 2020)