By: Julia Lawlor and Elizabeth Sheehan
The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is
a museum in Boston, MA, that is named after Isabella Stewart Gardner, an American
art collector. The museum holds hundreds of historical pieces of artwork, and is famous for the unsolved theft that occurred there in March of 1990.
- In the early morning hours of March 18th, 1990, thieves disguised as Boston police officers went into the museum going from gallery to gallery, stealing thirteen works of art in total.
- The “police officers” were able to get into the museum by claiming that they were responding to a disturbance. The guard who was on duty at the time, Richard Abath, did not follow protocol and let the thieves in to the museum.
- After gaining entry, the thieves asked for the guard to come around from behind his desk, and they claimed that they recognized Richard Abath as a felon and that there was a warrant out for his arrest.
- The thieves first went into the second-floor Dutch room where they stole six paintings, leaving behind a smashed frame and shattered glass. One of the paintings they stole was located on a secret door disguised as a wall panel, and investigators found the door opened, indicating that the thieves had inside knowledge.
- The readings from the motion sensors indicate that one of the criminals then went into the second-floor Short gallery and stole the Degas sketches and the eagle flagpole finial.
- A guard walked away from the desk and left the only security button unmanned. The guard was told to summon the other guard was who on duty to the security desk.
- The thieves then handcuffed both guards and brought them to the basement where they were secured to pipes with their hands, feet, and mouths duct-taped.
- The two guards were placed 40 yards away from each other.
- When the next security guard arrived later in the morning, he found the night guards still handcuffed to the pipes. The paintings were discovered to be stolen, and the guards notified the police and the director.
- The paintings that were stolen are worth 500 million dollars.
“FBI Provides New Information Regarding the 1990 Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum Art Heist
Information Sought from Those in Philadelphia and Connecticut Who May Have Knowledge of the Art’s Location
FBI Boston
March 18, 2013
The FBI, along with Boston’s Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts, released new information about one of the largest property crimes in U.S. history—the art theft from the museum more than two decades ago. The FBI is appealing to the public for help in what is one of the FBI’s Top Ten Art Crimes.
The FBI believes it has determined where the stolen art was transported in the years after the theft and that it knows the identity of the thieves, Richard DesLauriers, special agent in charge of the FBI’s Boston office, revealed for the first time in the 23-year investigation. “The FBI believes with a high degree of confidence that in the years after the theft, the art was transported to Connecticut and the Philadelphia region, and some of the art was taken to Philadelphia, where it was offered for sale by those responsible for the theft.” DesLauriers added, “With that same confidence, we have identified the thieves, who are members of a criminal organization with a base in the Mid-Atlantic states and New England.” After the attempted sale, which took place approximately a decade ago, the FBI’s knowledge of the art’s whereabouts is limited.
Information is being sought from those who possess or know the whereabouts of the 13 stolen works of art—including rare paintings by Rembrandt and Vermeer—by publicizing new details about the case and continuing to highlight the $5 million reward for the return of the art. Although the FBI does not know where the art is currently located, the FBI is continuing its search, both in and beyond the Connecticut and Philadelphia areas. “With this announcement, we want to widen the ‘aperture of awareness’ of this crime to the reach the American public and others around the world,” said DesLauriers.
13 pieces of artwork were stolen:
- Stolen from the second floor Dutch Room:
- Rembrandt’s Storm on the Sea of Galilee (1633)
- A Lady and Gentleman in Black (1633) and a Self Portrait (1634), an etching on paper
- Vermeer’s The Concert (1658–1660)
- Govaert Flinck’s Landscape with an Obelisk (1638)
- A Chinese vase, or Ku
- Stolen from the second floor Short Gallery:
- Five works on paper by artist Edgar Degas
- A finial from the top of a pole support for a Napoleonic silk flag, both from the Short Gallery.
- Stolen from the first floor Blue Room:
- Edouard Manet’s Chez Tortoni (1878–1880).
- In 2010, a lead agent on the Gardner museum heist case sent old evidence to the FBI crime labs to be retested. DNA tests were conducted on the samples sent over, but no usable samples of DNA were found on whatever evidence was sent over.
- In 2013, in an official FBI press release, Special Agent Richard DesLauriers spoke about the probable path the artwork took after being stolen. He said that he FBI believes "with a high degree of confidence" that in the years following the theft, the artifacts were distributed in Connecticut and Pennsylvania, and some of the art was put up for sale in Philadelphia by the thieves. DesLauriers also claims, "with that same confidence", that the FBI has, at long last, identified the perpetrators as being members of a criminal group based in New England.
- 2015: It seems that the investigation is still underway. The FBI released decades-old surveillance footage from the crime that was only recently discovered. In it, Richard Abath, one of the security guards tied up the night of the crime, is seen letting a man into the museum the day before the robbery. He claims to have no recollection of the encounter, and authorities believe it could have been a dry-run of the burglary, with Abath as an inside accomplice.
- Chris Marinello, the CEO of Art Recovery Group, an organization dedicated to aiding in the solving of art thefts, says that modern technology is very much reshaping the way that the case is handled.
- Marinello has monitored the Gardner art robbery investigation and can say that new forensic technological progress, such as video enhancement, facial recognition, and most notably, DNA and fingerprint analysis, may be crucial to finally cracking the case.
- A lawyer with the case, Brian Kelly, says that forensic analysis of old evidence, such as the duct tape and handcuffs used to bind the guards, "could be retested with better technology now", possibly yielding new results.
- But, a spokesperson for the Boston office of the FBI said that she couldn't confirm or deny if any old evidence has been retested with new forensic technology.
- The FBI seem to have officially announced that they know who committed the
Gardner museum heist and that both of the thieves have since died. The FBI and investigators seem to be focused on bringing home all 13 of the missing artifacts.
Ongoing Forensic Investigation:
Landscape with an Obelisk,
Govaert Flinck
What Happened?
Press Release
Timeline
Works Cited
- 1991: The museum raised enough money to get a climate-control system and upgrade the security system.
- 1992: The theory that said the artworks were stolen for ransom was discounted because so much time had passed that it didn't seem plausible.
- 1993: A new suspect was identified, but he had an alibi and a full beard while the thieves both only had mustaches.
- 1994: An anonymous letter was delivered that offered to help return the art in exchange for $2.6 million and immunity from prosecution from all of the people involved in the theft. The letter asked the museum to respond via the Boston Globe by printing a 1 in a certain section. A second letter followed the museum's answer in the Globe that seemed positive about cooperating but alarmed by the aggressive police reaction.
Suspects and Theories:
What is the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum?
- First Suspect: Myles Connor: a notorious New England art thief who had been in jail at the time of the 1990 heist. Throughout the investigation, his lawyer has maintained that, "Myles would never tolerate butchering art."
- William Youngworth: a petty criminal from Boston, claimed he could broker the return of 11 of the 13 stolen items.
- Bobby Donati: has since died.
- David Houghton: has since died.
- Theories: Either the paintings had been stolen for a private art collection, or they had been taken to be held for ransom from the museum.
1. "Getting Young Adults into Art Museums." OnCell Points of Interest. 17 Apr. 2012. Web. 13 Oct. 2015.
2."The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Web. 13 Oct. 2015.
3."Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum." : Isabella Stewart Gardner. Web. 13 Oct. 2015.
4. "Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum." : Theft. Web. 13 Oct. 2015.
5."$5 Million Reward." FBI. FBI, 18 Mar. 2013. Web. 13 Oct. 2015.
6. "Press Release." FBI. FBI, 18 Mar. 2013. Web. 13 Oct. 2015.
7. "Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum." : Theft. Web. 13 Oct. 2015.
8. "Could New Technology Solve the Gardner Heist? - The Boston Globe." BostonGlobe.com. Web. 13 Oct. 2015.
9. "The Many Dead Ends of the Gardner Heist Investigation." Boston.com. The New York Times. Web. 13 Oct. 2015.
10. Kurkjian, Stephen. "DNA Clues in the Gardner Heist." Boston.com. The New York Times, 4 Mar. 2010. Web. 13 Oct. 2015.
11. "The Story Behind Attempted Recoveries of Art Stolen From Boston's Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum." Vanity Fair. Web. 13 Oct. 2015.
12. "FBI Says It Knows Who Was Behind Gardner Museum Heist." AO Art Observed RSS. Web. 13 Oct. 2015.
13. "Thirteen Works: Explore the Gardner's Stolen Art - Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum." Thirteen Works: Explore the Gardner's Stolen Art - Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. Web. 13 Oct. 2015.
14. All photos of stolen artwork via: FBI. FBI, 11 Dec. 2012. Web. 13 Oct. 2015.
Original Investigation:
What Was Stolen?
Forensic technology in use during the original 1990 investigation was not very advanced; forensic DNA testing was still relatively new, having first been used in a court conviction in 1987.
The alarm system in the building was only able to be activated by a single button on the guards' desk, and the criminals effectively disabled the system by securing the guards away from the button. Motion sensors installed throughout the museum detected most of the movements of the thieves as they robbed the museum (all from 9).
Money and Management in the Museum:
Facts of
the Case:
Timeline After the Theft:
- 2:41 a.m.: One thief exited the museum through a side door.
- 2:44 a.m.: The second thief left the building, completing the 13-piece of artwork heist that is the greatest property theft in U.S. history.
- 7:30 a.m.: Workers arrived for their daytime shifts and discovered the bound and gagged guards. Police were called, and the investigation began, continuing to this day.
- The museum was very behind the times in terms of security and safety.
- There was one single button to activate the alarm system located on the guard desk.
- Lax security protocols and training hindered the museum in the face of actual criminals.
- The museum did not have a climate control air system to protect the masterpieces from fluctuating temperature and humidity.
- None of the art was insured at the time of the heist.
- The thieves first went into the second-floor Dutch room where they stole six paintings, leaving behind a smashed frame and shattered glass. One of the paintings they stole was located on a secret door disguised as a wall panel, and investigators found the door opened, indicating that the thieves had inside knowledge.
- The readings from the motion sensors indicate that one of the criminals then went into the second-floor Short gallery and stole the Degas sketches and the eagle flagpole finial.
- At some point, the thieves took a painting from the wall by removing the security bolts in the first-floor Blue room, but the motion detectors never picked up any disturbances.
Lady and Gentleman, Rembrandt
Self Portrait Etch, Rembrandt
The Storm at the Sea of Galilee,
Rembrandt
Stolen pieces of History: the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum art heist