France: Investigators recover 2 stolen Renoir paintings

Two paintings by Pierre-Auguste Renoir that were stolen from a museum in France last month have been found, authorities said on Friday.

The two stolen paintings were the Portrait of Madame Colonna Romano (1910) and Jeune fille au puits (1886). Both belong to Paris' Orsay Museum and were on loan.

According to DW News, police have arrested six people in connection with the crime.

The heist followed a string of high-profile robberies from European museums, including the theft of crown jewels from the Louvre in Paris last year.

The robbery took place in the early morning of September 8, when thieves broke into the grounds of the Renoir Museum in Cagnes-sur-Mer through a hole cut in a garden fence and entered through a window.

They had also stolen two other paintings, Madame Pichon and Coco Reading, a portrayal of Claude, Renoir's young son. But they dropped those in the gardens as they were running away from the police, who had arrived on the scene, alerted by alarms.

The local mayor praised authorities for recovering the paintings and said the news gave immense joy and profound relief.

Six suspects have also been arrested in relation to the heist at Renoir Museum, the town hall confirmed in a statement.

The theft was the latest in a series of high-profile art heists in Europe.

The Renoir Museum is home to 12 of the famous painter's artworks. Opened in 1960, it houses a variety of objects that once belonged to him, including his easel and wheelchair, as well as photographs and personal letters.