A lavish solid gold toilet worth £2.8m was stolen from Blenheim Palace in a swift and daring robbery, according to court proceedings. The luxurious toilet was part of an art exhibition at the stately Oxfordshire residence in September 2019 and had been fully operational. Michael Jones, 39, hailing from Divinity Road in Oxford, pleaded not guilty to burglary, while Frederick Sines, 36, also known as Frederick Doe from Windsor, and 41-year-old Bora Guccuk from west London denied conspiring to transfer criminal property.
During the trial at Oxford Crown Court, prosecutor Julian Christopher KC detailed how a gang of five individuals, traveling in two vehicles, forcefully entered the palace grounds through locked gates in the early hours of 14 September 2019. Armed with sledgehammers, they gained entry to the building and made off with the valuable artwork. Authorities believe the stolen toilet was likely dismantled and its pieces never recovered, despite extensive searches.
Notably, a photo taken approximately 17 hours before the burglary occurred revealed Mr. Jones engaging in reconnaissance near the target area. The court was informed that the entire operation, from breaching security to fleeing with the golden toilet, took a mere five minutes. The artwork, named America, was created by Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan and was on display at Blenheim Palace. Weighing 98kg, the toilet was insured for $6m, with the gold component alone valued at £2.8m based on prevailing prices in September 2019.
Text messages, voice notes, and screenshots retrieved from the phones of the accused shed light on their negotiations to sell around 20kg of stolen gold at a price of £25,632 per kilo. Mr. Guccuk, who operated the jewlery store Pacha of London at Hatton Garden, stood to profit roughly £3,000 for each kilo of gold he offloaded. Blenheim Palace holds UNESCO World Heritage status and boasts historical significance as the birthplace of Sir Winston Churchill. The legal proceedings are ongoing as more details surrounding the brazen theft emerge
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