Greece recovers stolen Olympia artefacts
Greece on Saturday said it had recovered dozens of archaeological artefacts stolen in February from a museum in Olympia after arresting three men in connection to the case.
“The discovery and arrest of the perpetrators of the robbery and the recovery of the stolen items are a great success,” deputy education minister responsible for culture Costas Tzavaras said in a statement.
A pair of armed robbers in February made off with nearly 80 artefacts from a museum dedicated to the ancient Olympic Games, including a bronze statuette of a victorious athlete, a 2,400-year-old oil jar, clay lamps, bronze tripods and miniature chariot wheels, as well as dozens of idols of charioteers, horses and bulls.
A ministry source told AFP: “Archaeologists are currently evaluating but we understand that all of the artefacts have been recovered.”
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Greek police had earlier said that one of the suspects had been arrested at a hotel in the city of Patras on Friday after trying to sell a 3,300-year-old gold ring to an undercover officer posing as a potential buyer.
The man, who had asked 300,000 euros ($387,000) for the Bronze Age ring, later cracked under questioning and named his accomplices, a local police source said.
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