Renoir paintings stolen from museum in southern France | NHK WORLD

Renoir paintings stolen from museum in southern France

Two paintings by Renoir, a prominent French Impressionist painter, have been stolen from an art museum in southern France. Local media say the total loss amounts to around 9 million euros, or roughly 10 million dollars.

On Tuesday, multiple people cut through a perimeter fence and broke into the Renoir Museum in Cagnes-sur-Mer, southern France, before its opening time.

Police reportedly arrived at the scene nearly 5 minutes after the alarm system went off, but the works were already gone.

Local authorities say the stolen items are paintings titled "Madame Colonna Romano" and "Young Woman at the Well."

Bryan Masson, the local mayor, suggested that the perpetrators had been well-prepared, wearing helmets and gloves and dressed in combat gear.

The museum is located in the last home of Renoir. He had studios there.

In France, a series of incidents targeting museums, including the theft of jewelry at the Louvre Museum in Paris last year, has posed challenges for facilities trying to protect their exhibits.