Tip leads to stolen paintings in ram raid

Two paintings by famed artist Gottfried Lindauer worth $1 million stolen in a burglary five years ago have been recovered by police.

In April 2017, the Lindauer paintings were stolen from an Auckland art gallery following a ram raid.

Detective Inspector Scott Beard, of Auckland City CIB, said the paintings, which suffered minor damage, were returned to their “rightful” owners yesterday.

“The police were contacted by an intermediary, who tried to return the paintings on behalf of others,” Beard said.

Police are still working to identify those responsible for the break-in and are still awaiting the results of the forensic investigation.

“Despite extensive investigations being conducted at the time, no one has yet been charged,” he said.

“Pending any forensic results from our investigation, police will look at any new information that becomes available and we will follow up as appropriate.”

The original investigation ended years ago.

Beard said it was incredibly fortunate that they were able to return the paintings more than five years after they were stolen.

“Loyalty changes over time and there may be people who know those responsible for the break-in,” Beard said.

“No matter how much time passes, we remain open to the fact that we can hold a person or people responsible for the 2017 break-in.”