2000 Stockholm Art Heist

In a daring art heist at the National Museum of Fine Arts in Stockholm in December 2000, armed thieves seized priceless artworks valued at around $30 million. This audacious theft involved masked raiders, including one armed with an MP5 submachine gun, who stormed the museum in broad daylight, diverting the authorities' attention with a pair of car explosions. Two associates already inside the museum joined him, grabbing valuable artworks, including a Rembrandt self-portrait and two Renoirs.

The thieves made their audacious escape via a waiting speedboat, racing away into the waterways of Stockholm. They scattered nails around the museum entrance to hinder police cars from pursuing them. While the boat was later found abandoned in a lake, it took several years to recover all the stolen paintings. Ultimately, over a dozen criminals and shady art dealers were apprehended for their roles in this sensational heist. This audacious art heist drew comparisons to a previous high-profile robbery in Stockholm in 1993, when thieves infiltrated the Modern Museum, stealing valuable Cubist masterpieces.