CCTV catches art thieves in the act

Sep 1, 2003 12:00 PM

Police say surveillance cameras caught the theft of one of Leonardo da Vinci's most emblematic Madonna paintings from a castle in southern Scotland.

"The images taken from the Drumlanrig Castle CCTV system show the men involved in the theft of the painting," a police spokesperson said. "They can be seen making efforts to conceal their facial features."

Two thieves posed as visitors before overpowering a female guide and making away with the painting. The surveillance images showed two men leaving the scene together with two accomplices in a white car.

Police are seeking four men spotted driving around in a white Volkswagen car near the castle. The car was later found abandoned.

The stolen painting, dating from 1501 and generally known as the Madonna of the Yarnwinder, shows the Virgin Mary in deep blue and the infant Jesus, who holds a spindle resembling a cross, against a background of jagged blue mountains.

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