Chapter 31

Summary

• In November 2001 Breitwieser was captured at the Wagner Museum while Anne-Catherine, his companion, managed to escape. Whereabouts of many stolen paintings remain unknown.
• In May 2002 Breitwieser’s mother is arrested by French authorities, Stengel testifies that she alone had disposed of the stolen art and expressed remorse.
• After his arrest, his mother is believed to have begun disposing of the stolen art to avoid being charged as an accessory.
• Stengel begins to panic and in a frenzy starts to smash various valuable pieces, stuffing them into bags and boxes.
• Stengel then dumped multiple car-loads of art into a secluded section of the Rhône-Rhine Canal. On one trip, she dumps the 150-pound Virgin Mary statue in a local church, claiming to have done so alone, even though Breitwieser believes she had help.
• Stengel’s new boyfriend Fritsch, denies any involvement but stolen items are found in his pond.
• The last items Breitwieser believes were disposed of were the oil paintings on wood, which he presumed were burnt in a forest. The apartment was then cleaned and repainted to remove any trace of the heist.
• While Breitwieser assumes this was done to protect him, Stengel tells the police she was actually out to hurt her son as a form of punishment for the stress he'd caused her.