The recovered paintings “Portrait of Madame Colonna Romano”, right, and “Young Woman at the Well”, stolen from the Renoir Museum in Cagnes-sur-Mer, are on display at the Interdisciplinary Center for Heritage Conservation and Restoration in Marseille, France, on Monday October 12, 2026.
Philippe Magoni/AP
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Philippe Magoni/AP
NANTERRE, France — DNA left on the protective covering of a painting helped investigators find two stolen Renoirs and uncover what they suspected were preparations for another art theft, a French prosecutor said Monday.
Four men have been charged in connection with the investigation into the September 8 theft at the small Renoir museum in the French Riviera town of Cagnes-sur-Mer. The charges include organized theft and criminal conspiracy, said Marseille prosecutor Nicolas Bessone.
A painting, “Portrait of Madame Colonna Romano”, was torn. The other, “Young Woman at the Well,” had slight damage to the frame, Bessone said. He estimated their combined value at 4.2 million euros ($4.7 million).
The thieves used an electric saw to cut a fence, entered the museum through the ground floor and cut the clips securing the frames of four paintings. An alarm was raised and police arrived four minutes later, a quick response that “apparently caused panic among the perpetrators,” Bessone said.
“While fleeing, they were unable to take the four paintings and abandoned two, which were later found in a protective bag,” he explained.
Vehicle location led to suspects
DNA found on the discarded blanket matched that of a 29-year-old man already under investigation in a drug trafficking case in which police were following his vehicle, Bessone said.
Vehicle location data showed that the suspect, accompanied by a 41-year-old man, went to the home of a third man shortly after the robbery, Bessone said.
Police surveillance also showed that the 29-year-old had visited the Fondation Maeght in Saint-Paul-de-Vence, which houses a significant collection of modern art, on October 3.
The suspect then met a fourth man known to police in art theft and counterfeiting cases in 2001 and 2003.
Bessone said the arrests were prompted by “very strong suspicions that another robbery was imminent.”
The paintings were hidden behind a wall
The two men suspected of having committed the theft of the museum were charged, among other things, with “organized gang theft” and “criminal conspiracy”. They were sent to prison pending further investigation. They denied any wrongdoing, Bessone said.
The recovered paintings “Portrait of Madame Colonna Romano” on the right and “Young Woman at the Well”, stolen from the Renoir Museum in Cagnes-sur-Mer, are on display at the Interdisciplinary Center for Heritage Conservation and Restoration in Marseille, France, on Monday October 12, 2026.
Philippe Magoni/AP
hide caption
Philippe Magoni/AP
The third suspect admitted to receiving the paintings at his home and hiding them behind a wall built under a staircase after the theft. Investigators recovered the Renoirs from the hideout, Bessone said.
The fourth suspect admitted to seeing photographs of the paintings but said he did not immediately recognize them. These two suspects were previously charged with “receiving” stolen paintings. They were released under judicial supervision and prohibited from leaving France.
Two other people arrested were released without charge.
Theft reignites concerns about museum security
The Renoir Museum occupies the final resting place of the leading French impressionist painter Pierre-Auguste Renoir, who lived there until his death in 1919. It is the best-known attraction in Cagnes-sur-Mer, a Mediterranean coastal town between Cannes and Nice.
The theft revived painful memories of the spectacular theft of the crown jewels from the Louvre museum in Paris last year and renewed calls for better security and increased funding at many cultural sites across France.
Christian Sainte, national director of the judicial police, said Monday that the country “is repeatedly targeted by organized criminal groups who carry out theft operations targeting valuable objects that are part of our cultural heritage” in museums, castles, places of worship, private homes and art galleries.
French museums have recorded 23 cases in 2025 and around ten this year, he said.
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