Robbers raid top European art fair in broad daylight, police say

Suspected armed robbers raided one of Europe’s biggest art fairs in the Dutch city of Maastricht in broad daylight on Tuesday, police said, with video showing men smashing a display case with a sledgehammer.

“Police are investigating a possible armed robbery of the TEFAF in Maastricht. Four suspects are believed to be involved. They are now searched for by multiple units,” Limburg province police said on Twitter.

Police later said they had arrested two people and had closed a number of nearby roads and a major road tunnel.

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Dutch media said the display case targeted by the robbers contained items from a London jeweler.

Dramatic video on social media showed four men dressed in smart clothes, flat caps and glasses smashing their way into a jewelry case at the show.

Two of the men brandished what appeared to be weapons at a bystander, who tried to intervene using a large glass vase full of flowers.

The European Fine Art Fair, commonly known as TEFAF, is one of the biggest in Europe and regularly draws tens of thousands of visitors.

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