Overview
- The court in Assen sentenced Jan B., Douglas Chesley W., and Bernhard Z. to 47 months in prison in a ruling handed down on Friday.
- Most stolen items were returned on April 1 after plea deals: the 2,500-year-old Coțofenești helmet and two armbands were recovered while one armband remains missing.
- Forensic work by the Netherlands Forensic Institute linked DNA and glass and gold traces from dumped clothing and a container to the suspects, providing the central physical evidence in the case.
- The court found law-enforcement breaches during the investigation, including public release of suspects’ names and photos and interrogation practices it called overly pressuring, and said those failures reduced the sentences.
- Two defendants who struck deals with the Public Prosecution Service cannot appeal because their punishments closely match the agreements while the third defendant and the prosecution retain the right to appeal, and the case has highlighted the high cultural value and €5.7 million insured loss tied to the loaned collection.