28 stolen art pieces worth $3.5 mn found in Spain

Madrid, Dec 21 (IANS/EFE) Twenty-eight art works, including a few by Pablo Picasso, which were stolen last month from near Madrid have been found, officials said. The art works are valued at 2.7 million euros ($3.5 million).

Among the works stolen was a sculpture by Eduardo Chillida worth 800,000 euros ($1 million), as well as pieces by Fernando Botero, Pablo Picasso, Antoni Tapies and Julio Gonzalez.

The art pieces that were on a truck were stolen Nov 27 from a warehouse in the Madrid suburb of Getafe, where security cameras filmed three hooded men stealing the vehicle. The truck was found empty a few days later.

The pieces were lent by galleries in Madrid and Barcelona to a gallery in Cologne, Germany.

The art was on its way back to the Spanish galleries at the time of the robbery.

–IANS/EFE