Swiss art theft

This is a shocking level of brazenness.

From the article:

ZURICH (Reuters) - Masked robbers brandishing handguns stole four paintings by 19th Century masters worth $164 million from a Zurich museum in Switzerland’s biggest art theft, police said on Monday.

Oil paintings by Cezanne, Degas, van Gogh and Monet were stolen in broad daylight on Sunday from the private Buehrle Collection in the second dramatic art theft in the area within days.

“This is the biggest robbery in Switzerland in an art museum and one of the biggest art robberies in Europe,” said Peter Rueegger, head of investigations for the Zurich police.

Update 2/20/08 — Two of the four stolen paintings, the Monet and Van Gogh, have been recovered.