A snap shot of the rare Late Period gold bracelet that was stolen from the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. Photo courtesy of Egyptian Ministry of Interior.
The Interior Ministry said in a statement issued on Thursday that it received a report on Saturday from museum officials after the disappearance of the artefact from a secure locker in the museum’s restoration laboratory.
Investigations revealed that a museum restoration specialist exploited her access on 9 September to steal the bracelet.
The suspect later contacted an acquaintance who owned a silver shop in Sayeda Zeinab to sell the stolen artefact for 180,000 EGP, according to investigators.
That shopkeeper then resold it to a gold workshop owner in the historic jewellery district, who in turn passed it on to a gold foundry worker for 194,000 EGP.
The foundry worker melted the bracelet and recast it into other gold pieces, said investigators.
Authorities said all three suspects were arrested, confessed to the crime, and the proceeds of the sale were recovered.
The Interior Ministry released a video from the silver shop CCTV showing its owner receiving the bracelet and weighing it.
The artefact, a solid gold and lapis lazuli piece belonging to King Amenemope of the Third Intermediate Period, stated the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities on Tuesday.
The gem disappeared from a secure restoration laboratory as it was being prepared for an exhibit abroad, added the ministry.
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