Rhino horns stolen from European museums
29th February 2012
Recent robberies of rhino horns from UK and German museums are the latest in what appears to be a worrying trend developing in this illegal trade
On Saturday 18 February, a gang of four stole a rhino horn from the Ritterhaus Museum in Germany. Police officials believe the same criminals could be responsible for a rhino horn theft from the Dorotheum Auction House in Vienna last year.
According to reports, two of the team distracted security while the remaining two found the rhino on the second floor. Despite the taxidermy rhino hanging 5m up in the air, the thieves managed to remove the horn using a sledgehammer.
The stolen horn is thought to be worth €50,000 on the black market.
Just two days later on the 20 of February, four men attempted to steal Norwich Castle Museum's prized rhino horn. The men grabbed the head and tried to escape, but were stopped by museum staff.
Vanessa Trevelyan, director of Norfolk Museums and Archaeology Service, said: "Rhino horns are extremely valuable. We are the first museum, I believe, to have foiled such an attack."
These are just the latest spate of rhino horn thefts witnessed across Europe in recent months. Only two months ago, thieves used tear gas to rob the Museum of Hunting and Nature in Paris of its rhino horn.
Wildlife expert Mark Carwardine suggested it was time to fear for the rhino's survival: "More rhinos are being killed in Africa and Asia than at any time in the past 20 years – partly because demand for rhino horn for use in Traditional Chinese Medicine is at an all-time high.
"The fact that museum specimens are now being targeted demonstrates the incredibly high value of rhino horn these days and the extraordinary lengths criminal gangs will go to in order to profit from this illegal trade. It's really frightening – if this trend continues for much longer, several rhino species could become extinct on our watch."
In the last year alone, there have been more than 20 thefts of rhino horns from museums and auction houses across Europe. It has lead to many museums removing their rhino horns from display and replacing them with replicas so they will no longer be a target for thieves.
More like this
More troops deployed to tackle rhino poaching | News... More
Poachers kill 11 rhinos in 2012, already | News... More
Safari park stops pinpointing rhinos for tourists | News... More
Worst year for rhino poaching yet | News... More
South African army called in to stop poaching | News... More