Drents Museum warned about holes in security before theft of Romanian treasures

The Drents Museum was warned about holes in its security before several Romanian treasures were stolen from it in January. The insurer warned that the glass in the display cases is not strong enough to withstand hammer blows, for example, RTL Nieuws reported based on photos and documents. And that proved to be the case. The display case holding the stolen golden helmet of Coțofenești shattered after just two blows.

Three men broke into the Drents Museum in Assen in just three minutes on January 25. They blew open an exterior door with a firework bomb, smashed two display cases with sledgehammers, and made off with a golden helmet and two golden bracelets. By the time the police arrived 15 minutes later, the perpetrators were long gone. Three suspects are in custody, but the over 2,500-year-old Romanian treasures, insured for €5.7 million, are still missing.

Four weeks before the exhibition Dacia, Empire of Gold and Silver opened in July 2025, an expert from the museum’s insurer, Aon, conducted a comprehensive inspection. The expert explicitly warned the museum about the weaknesses that the art thieves later exploited.

The display cases were too weak. “The burglary resistance of the display cases is too low, considering the insured value,” Aon wrote. “Therefore, we recommend additional security: use display cases with burglary resistance of at least five minutes.” The Drents Museum did not replace the display cases.

Aon also warned about the emergency exit, which the thieves blew open with Ti-rex fireworks. According to the report, no security rating was known for that door, even though it was the only barrier to entering the gallery.

The museum did adopt some of Aon’s recommendations, including reinforcing the outer door. But this reinforcement has been criticized, according to the broadcaster. Police photos show a wooden frame with concrete mesh built around the emergency exit. A security expert RTL spoke to called it “shoddy work” that wouldn’t stop burglars.

Ernest Oberländer, the former director of the Romanian National History Museum, which loaned the treasures to the Drents Museum, told RTL that the Assen museum had given them “verbal assurances” that it would use burglar-resistant glass. “I was informed that the display cases met burglary standards and were designed to withstand mechanical impact for ten minutes,” said Oberländer, who was fired because of the theft. “The museum and the insurer did not report any doubts about the display cases.”

The Drents Museum, the Romanian National History Museum, and Aon all declined to comment to RTL Nieuws on the security measures. All three parties emphasized that all conditions of the loan had been met.