Ukrainian Border Guards Help to Find a Masterpiece of Dutch Painting Stolen 19 Years Ago

As part of international cooperation to combat cross-border crime, Ukrainian border guards contributed to recovering a painting that the Interpol had been searching for almost 20 years, Ukrinform reports.

After obtaining a tip, operatives probed a Ukrainian national who had left for Poland reportedly seeking contacts to sell Jan Linsen's painting "Eliezer and Rebecca at the Well", dated 1629. The culprit had also been seeking such contacts inside Ukraine. 

The painting had been wanted by Interpol since 2005 when it was stolen from the Westfries Museum in the Netherlands along with 23 other paintings and 70 silver exhibits. Many of them remain missing to this day. 

The border operatives received enough evidence pointing to an illegal dealing in the making. 

The relevant information was forwarded to the Polish border guards, who confirmed the initial tip. Then the two border agencies, together with the Dutch officials, launched a joint operation to recover the artwork.

On Ukraine’s soil, the Dutch Embassy’s liaison officer was involved in the effort.

As a result of the mission, the stolen painting has been successfully recovered.

Law enforcers detained and pressed charges against the perpetrator, who will be remanded in custody for the next three months. The investigation is led by the District Prosecutor's Office of Krakow, Poland.