Over a thousand irreplaceable relics were stolen from a prominent Oakland museum earlier this month.
Since the now-viral jewel heist at the Louver took place on October 19th saw an estimated $103 million worth of priceless gems seized from the world-famous museum in less than seven minutes; some napkin math means that every minute passed, the thieves pulled more than $14 million.
But unbeknownst to Bay Area residents, the Oakland Museum of California (OMCA) suffered a heist four days before the Louver’s, which resulted in criminals walking away with over 1,000 historic artifacts.
The heist occurred in the early morning hours of Wednesday, October 15, at approximately 3:30 a.m. But the thievery, itself, didn’t happen on exhibit grounds like the Louver, but rather at an off-site storage facility that housed OMCA’s tucked-away treasures — a common practice for large museums, including the Louvre. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, thieves stole hundreds of artifacts — over a thousand in total, per the newspapers — and even stole stored laptops, making the robbery seem brazen and non-directional in its scope of stolen treasures; OMCA reports that a number of native American baskets, jewelry, and painted tusks were taken, as well.
On Friday, October 31st, the museum released its first official statement about the incident, shedding light on some of the details and confirming that this was a “crime of opportunity,” rather than a “targeted attack.”
“Based on current findings, investigators believe this was a crime of opportunity, not a targeted theft,” reads the statement.”There is no indication that the perpetrators specifically identified the facility as museum storage or sought particular artworks or artifacts. Instead, it appears they gained access and took items that were most easily available.”
OMCA’s later revealed in the statement that the vast majority of the pieces stolen were “historic memorabilia”; things like political pins, award ribbons, and souvenir tokens were among the types of most stolen items; OMCA confirmed, however, that at least six Native American artifacts were stolen; OMCA’s executive director and CEO Lori Fogarty has stated the museum is in conversation with native american communities about the pieces and how they’re
“This is a loss not only for OMCA, but for the broader community,” said Lori Fogarty, Executive Director and CEO, Oakland Museum of California. “The Museum takes its responsibility to steward California’s history and cultural legacy with the utmost seriousness and remains committed to recovering the stolen items and ensuring their continued care for future generations.”
The release of this information has been coordinated with law enforcement to ensure public assistance can be most effective. The investigation remains active, and OMCA continues to cooperate fully with OPD and the FBI.
Anyone with information related to this case is urged to contact the Oakland Police Department Burglary Section at (510) 238-3951, or the FBI Art Crime Team at Tips.fbi.gov or 1-800-CALL-FBI.
