11 Paintings, Stolen in Przemyśl During Evacuation From Ukraine in 2022, Found in Poland

Law enforcement officers have found 11 works of contemporary art that were stolen in Poland during the evacuation from Kyiv to Switzerland after the outbreak of a full-scale war. This was reported by Rzeczpospolita.

The Polish prosecutor's office said that the works of art were stolen during a robbery on the night of 25 March 2022 in Przemyśl, when they were being transported from Ukraine to Switzerland.

These are ten paintings and one photograph by such artists as Damien Hirst, Banksy, Takashi Murakami, Linda McCartney, and Xingning Shi. Their total value is over $186,600.

‘On 9 December 2024, a significant breakthrough in the investigation took place - after almost three years, the stolen works of contemporary art by famous foreign artists were returned,’ said prosecutor Malgorzata Tatsiukh-Kurasiewicz.

She said that on 11 December, foreign experts confirmed the authenticity of the works.

According to the prosecutor, the return of the stolen paintings and photographs was the result of joint work by the District Prosecutor's Office in Przemyśl, officers of the Voivodeship Police Department in Rzeszow, and cooperation with representatives of the company that owns the works.

It is noted that the investigation into the theft of works of art was conducted by the International Joint Investigation Team, established within the framework of the European institution Eurojust, under the supervision of the Przemyśl Prosecutor's Office.

In addition, the Director of the Department of the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine and officers of the National Police of Ukraine worked on the search for the paintings.