Three paintings by famous Impressionists were stolen from the private Manfredi-Rocca Foundation museum near Parma. The thieves broke the entrance door and fled with the masterpieces through the garden just three minutes later.
Three paintings by famous Impressionists were stolen from the private Manfredi-Rocca Foundation museum near Parma, reports DW. A police representative confirmed to AFP the information about the theft, which was reported by Italian media on Sunday, March 29. According to them, the robbery took place a week earlier - on the night of March 22 to 23. Stolen were Pierre-Auguste Renoir's late work "Fish," Paul Cézanne's pencil and watercolor "Still Life with Cherries," and Henri Matisse's watercolor "Odalisque on the Terrace."
It is reported that the thieves, hiding their faces with hoods, broke the entrance door and fled with the masterpieces through the garden just three minutes later. The Manfredi-Rocca Foundation stated that this was a planned crime that "did not go further thanks to the video surveillance system and the prompt intervention of the police and security." The estimated value of the stolen items is in the millions of euros. An investigation is underway.
The foundation named after art critic and collector Luigi Manfredi houses his collection of masterpieces, including works by Titian, Dürer, Rubens, and Goya. This private museum is considered one of the most important Italian art collections.
Louvre Robbery
The theft of paintings from the Manfredi-Rocca Foundation museum is not the only high-profile crime in the art world in recent months. On October 19, 2025, jewels belonging to French monarchs worth approximately 88 million euros were stolen from the Louvre in Paris. The robbers, while fleeing, dropped a crown adorned with diamonds and emeralds belonging to Empress Eugénie.
Several people have been detained in connection with this case, and charges have been brought against some of them. However, the jewels themselves have not yet been found. It was reported that shortly after the robbery, the thieves attempted to negotiate with the Louvre through an Israeli firm, offering to return the stolen items for money, but the management of the French museum did not take advantage of this opportunity.
In November, a video allegedly filmed by the Ukrainian National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) began circulating online. It claimed that the stolen items were found in the home of Ukrainian billionaire and former associate of President Volodymyr Zelensky, Timur Mindich, who was involved in a corruption scandal surrounding "Energoatom." However, DW's fact-checking revealed that this video is a fake, partially generated by AI.
