Stolen in 5 minutes: Thieves get jailed for stealing 18-carat gold toilet, called America: Check how much it's worth
Two men from Oxford have been jailed for stealing a £4.8 million ($6.5 million) gold toilet. The crime took place during an art show at Blenheim Palace in 2019.
The solid 18-carat gold toilet is called America. It was stolen just after a launch party at the palace.
The artwork was created by Italian visual artist Maurizio Cattelan, who became popular after creating the viral artwork of a fresh banana duct-taped to a wall.
James Sheen, 40, admitted to burglary and selling the stolen gold. Michael Jones, 39, was found guilty of burglary, the BBC reported.
Sheen was sentenced to four years, and Jones got two years and three months. The court called it a 'bold and brazen' theft that took just over five minutes.
Sheen's DNA, gold pieces in his clothes and messages on his phone helped convict him.
Senior crown prosecutor Shan Saunders said it was rare to find so much information on one phone. During the trial, jurors heard voice notes from Sheen to Fred Doe, who was earlier found guilty of planning to sell the stolen gold toilet.
The messages were hard to understand because they used coded words, Romany slang and Cockney rhyming slang. Sheen used 'car' as a code for gold.
" The car is what it is mate, innit? The car is as good as money," the BBC quoted him as saying.
Just two weeks after the theft, Sheen sold 20kg of gold for £520,000 ($707,200). He had a long criminal past, having been jailed at least six times since 2005.
Sheen is already serving 19 years for other crimes and will now serve an extra four years for this heist. Jones, who has a criminal past, visited Blenheim Palace twice before the theft.
On Sheen's order, he booked a slot to use the toilet, took photos and checked the layout. He later called the golden toilet 'splendid'.
Judge Ian Pringle KC said Jones had helped plan the theft by mapping the fastest way in and out. Detective Superintendent Bruce Riddell called Sheen the mastermind, who wanted to 'make money by any means necessary'.
"Jones also played a key part in the burglary, as he carried out two recces at Blenheim Palace in the days leading up to the burglary, and it is our belief that he also was there on the night," Riddell said.
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