Six brothers and cousins, aged between 23 and 28, are now standing trial in Germany for what is dubbed as the world’s biggest gem heist – 4,300 diamonds insured for at least $129 million, taken from The Green Vault museum in Dresden in November 2019.
According to IDEX Online, The Green Vault’s director, Marius Winzeler, told German media: “We will not rest until we have the jewels back.”
The heist occurred as “security guards watched raiders live on CCTV” smashing their way into The Green Vault in the palace. They then took off with a treasure trove of diamonds and jewelry, among them “the famous 18th century 49-carat Dresden white diamond bought by August the Strong, then Elector of Saxony,” (valued at $12 milion) and a sword encrusted with nine large and 770 smaller diamonds.
The men are accused of organized robbery and arson. According to the report, the robbers started a fire to cut the power supply to street lights before the heist.
