We keep hearing stories of unusual thefts occurring around the world every day. From stolen bridges and Boeings to missing beaches and icebergs, the world has seen several bizarre heists time and time again. But this time, it’s something extraordinarily weird. A bunch of thieves have stolen a toilet. Yes, a potty seat but there’s a catch! It’s made of 18-carat gold and is worth $6 million! Here’s how the thieves executed one of the strangest heists in the world in a mere 5 minutes!
Back in 2019, one of the most bizarre thefts was reported at Blenheim Palace where a group of men swiftly stole a gold toilet valued £4.8 million. What’s more shocking is that the thieves committed the bizarre heist in just an audacious 5-minute cakewalk! Yes, a fully-functional gold toilet was stolen from the Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire, and the news made it to the headlines. The toilet, an 18-carat gold fixture, was nicknamed ‘America’ and it was a part of an exhibition. The exhibition was conducted by Maurizio Cattelan, an Italian conceptual artist, and he had put America on display at the Palace when the theft occurred.
It is believed that the burglary was committed by a group of 5 individuals in the early hours of September 14, 2019. The men broke through the locked gates of the Palace on two vehicles and smashed their way directly into the building. They allegedly used sledgehammers to break into the crime scene and left the weapons there. They then stole the ‘gold mine’ that weighed around 98 kg and was insured for a whopping $6 million. But the even more bizarre thing about this incident is that the 5 individuals completed the entire operation in just 5 minutes.
Based on the charges of theft and burglary, 3 of the accused are currently on trial at the Oxford Crown Court. 39-year-old Michael Jones has been accused of taking a picture of the ‘toilet’ 17 hours before the theft, but the man has been denying the charges all these years. Two other accused named Fred Doe, 36, and Bora Guccuk, 41, have also been held guilty. Several evidence have been presented against these two, including messages, voice notes, and screenshots on their phones wherein they’ve negotiated on the price of the gold toilet.
However, it is believed that the stolen ‘artwork’ of the 18-carat gold toilet has likely been melted down into smaller quantities of gold. Though the criminals have been arrested for trial, the artwork has never been recovered to date.
