Stolen Cézanne, Renoir and Matisse recovered after five-month hunt

Italian police have recovered three paintings by the French masters Paul Cézanne, Pierre-Auguste Renoir and Henri Matisse that were stolen from the Fondazione Magnani Rocca museum in Mamiano di Traversetolo, near Parma, in March, the Guardian reported on Friday. The artworks, valued collectively at more than $10 million, were found five months after the nighttime heist, according to the New York Times, which cited Italian military police.

On Friday, police released new CCTV footage of the theft, showing two masked burglars entering through a window and grabbing the canvases, the Guardian reported in a separate video item. The BBC also carried the footage, noting the art had been recovered after being stolen in March. Le Monde put the combined value of the paintings at more than €10 million.

Al Jazeera reported that nine Moldovans are being investigated in connection with the theft. The recovery closes a case that had drawn international attention to the security of Italy's smaller museums, a subject of particular resonance in a region like Tuscany, where heritage institutions far outnumber the police officers tasked with guarding them.