Mallory Moench
Live reporter

Image source, AFP via Getty Images

Stolen paintings have in rare cases been used as collateral in the criminal underworld, art detective Arthur Brand tells me.

In 2016, an arrested Mafia leader reportedly told police about two stolen Van Gogh paintings, which Brand says he then used to get a lower sentence for criminal charges he was facing.

But paintings are a lot harder to sell, and around 10 years ago, thieves began shifting to goods that are easy to get rid of.

A recent Europol report , externalsays offenders are increasingly targeting precious metals, gemstones, and culturally significant artefacts including Chinese porcelain.

“Precious metals can be easily melted down, leaving no trace for law enforcement, and facilitating illicit sales during the fencing process. Precious stones in jewellery, on the other hand, can be easily removed and sold further,” the European policing agency says.

"Although more gold and silver objects are being stolen these days, art thefts, specifically involving paintings - naturally still occur," Brand says.

Speaking following today's incident, Brand says "no one will want to buy" the stolen paintings as "they are already listed in every database and newspaper".

"It is likely, then, that the thieves have no idea what to do with them. Ultimately, the paintings will probably be recovered," he adds.

Madeleine Lake
Live reporter

Police are still searching for two suspects after millions of pounds worth of Renoir paintings were stolen from a museum on the French Riviera.

Here's what we know so far:

• Shortly before 06:00 local time on Tuesday, thieves broke into the Renoir museum and stole four paintings, before abandoning two in the museum gardens as they fled
• They were armed with a "knife and a hacksaw", and entered the museum grounds by cutting a hole through the fence, according to local mayor Bryan Masson
• The sound of police sirens and the museum's alarms caused the thieves to rush from the scene
• Police have cordoned off what appears to be the entry point to the heist
• The two paintings that remain missing are: The portrait of Madame Colonna Romano (1910), and Jeune femme au puits (1886)

And what we don't know:

• The identity and whereabouts of the thieves who fled from the scene. The Municipal Police and the National Police remain at the scene where an investigation is ongoing
• Earlier, the mayor's office said the estimated value of the stolen art was €9m (£7.7m; $10.5m), but it's unclear if this applies to all four paintings or just the two that were abandoned
• If any damage was caused to the abandoned paintings found in the museum gardens

Image source, Reuters

Earlier this year, one of Pierre-Auguste Renoir's paintings was among three works worth millions of euros that were stolen in a heist on a museum near the Italian city of Parma.

On 22 March, four masked men entered the Magnani Rocca Foundation villa, police said, making off with Les Poissons by Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Still Life with Cherries by Paul Cézanne and Odalisque on the Terrace by Henri Matisse.

Italian media outlets reported that the gang was in and out within three minutes, entering through the front door and escaping over a fence when the alarm was raised.

Last month Italian officials announced they had recovered the paintings, including Renoir's "Les Poissons", which they said had an estimated value of approximately three million euros.

Image source, Getty Images

More now from the local mayor's office, which says "every possible effort is being made" to recover the two missing paintings and catch those who are responsible.

The office says that the break-in was carried out by individuals who were "clearly organised, equipped and well-informed" and that French museums face "a new form of organised crime targeting works of art".

"All law-enforcement agencies are fully mobilised," a spokesperson says, adding that the Municipal Police, National Police and criminal investigation services are at the scene on the French Riviera.

The office calls on the French government to provide more financial support to local areas and museums to protect artwork from "increasingly organised and determined criminals".

Image source, Getty Images

We're hearing more comments from mayor Bryan Masson, who says the group who stole the artworks were "well equipped" and "well informed".

In comments translated from French, Masson tells the media the thieves "were wearing helmets, gloves, and combat gear" and carried "an electric knife and hacksaw" as they entered the museum gardens by cutting through a fence.

Masson says video footage shows the group cutting through structures holding the paintings' frames in place before making off with the artworks.

He confirms that two pictures were "abandoned" in the museum gardens and investigators have found two zip-up bags that may belong to the perpetrators.

Image source, Renoir Museum

Two paintings that were stolen from the Renoir museum remain missing and work is ongoing to trace them, according to an update from the local mayor's office.

Madame Colonna Romano and Jeune femme au puits (young woman at the well) are the two paintings that are missing, the mayor's office says.

As a reminder, four paintings were stolen in total, with the thieves abandoning two as they fled.

Image source, Renoir Museum

Mallory Moench
Live reporter

After thieves forced their way into display cases at the Louvre in Paris last October and made off with jewellery worth €88m, art detective Arthur Brand predicted to my colleague that it was just the start.

"We will see more of this because if you are able to hit the Louvre, thieves all around the world are watching that, thinking wow, and then they think, don’t we have a local museum with gold and silver?" Brand told me again last week.

Within hours of the Louvre heist, thieves had raided gold and silver coins from a smaller museum in France. And since then, criminals have hit museums across Europe - stealing a diamond necklace in Vienna, Bronze Age artefacts in Spain, and two locations in Italy.

"These are all copycats, they have seen the Louvre, they have seen these other thefts, and they think, let’s go for it," Brand said.

"Every museum in the world is stressing now - in every museum there have been meetings with the security officer or with the police."

As we've been reporting, four Renoir paintings were stolen shortly before 06:00 local time on Tuesday, before two were abandoned in the gardens of the Renoir museum.

French newspaper Nice-Matin reports that the four stolen paintings are: Portrait of Madame Pichon (1895); Portrait of Madame Colonna Romano (1910); Coco Lisant (1905); and Jeune femme au puits (1886).

It's not yet known which of the stolen paintings were abandoned.

Image source, Renoir Museum

Image source, Renoir Museum

Image source, Renoir Museum

Image source, Renoir Museum

These are the latest images coming to us from the Renoir museum, where a large hole can be seen in the wired fence surrounding the museum.

A police cordon is in place and officers are stationed outside the entrance.

The regional French newspaper Nice-Matin reports that the thieves cut through wire fencing to get into the grounds of the museum. You can find more details on this in our earlier post.

Image source, AFP via Getty Images

Image source, AFP via Getty Images

Image source, AFP

We can now bring you more from mayor Bryan Masson's comments outside the Renoir Museum this morning.

He tells reporters that the sound of police sirens and the museum's alarms caused the thieves to rush off from the scene.

He says they "fled by running in the gardens", and it appears they lost two pieces of art in the process. "So there are only two works of art that have been stolen", he adds.

The museum has a collection of 12 Renoir paintings, four of which were stolen. Two of the four stolen paintings were then abandoned by the thieves in the museum gardens, according to the mayor.

Image source, AFP via Getty Images

Speaking to reporters, the mayor of Cagnes-sur-Mer, Bryan Masson says two paintings were stolen at the Renoir Museum and two were left behind.

The thieves abandoned the two paintings in the museum gardens as they fled from the scene, he adds.

Authorities initially believed only one painting had been abandoned.

We can bring you more details on how the artwork at the Renoir museum is believed to have been stolen.

The regional French newspaper Nice-Matin reports that the thieves cut through wire fencing to get into the grounds of the museum.

It also reports that the perpetrators timed the theft to take advantage of a change-over in security personnel.

The Renoir museum is located in Cagnes-sur-Mer, a town on the French Riviera in the south of France.

The museum is set on an estate where Pierre-Auguste Renoir spent the last years of his life, and is just a short drive from the city of Nice.

Situated on a hill overlooking the Mediterranean, it is surrounded by an estate of ancient olive and citrus trees.

Hugh Schofield
Paris Correspondent

Image source, Renoir museum

According to the regional French newspaper Nice-Matin, the stolen paintings are:

• Portrait of Madame Pichon (1895)
• Portrait of Madame Colonna Romano (1910)
• Coco Lisant (1905)
• Jeune fille au puits (1886)

All of the paintings are by Renoir. They are visible on the museum website.

It is not yet clear which painting was abandoned by the thieves.

Image source, Getty Images

This morning's theft comes less than a year after €88m (£76m; $104m) worth of jewellery was stolen from the Louvre in Paris.

Among the items stolen in the Louvre heist were a diamond and an emerald necklace Emperor Napoleon gave to his wife.

In the Louvre heist, thieves used a stolen vehicle-mounted mechanical lift to gain access to the museum from a balcony close to the River Seine.

The four main suspects were arrested, but eight prized pieces of jewellery have not been recovered.

Art thieves in Europe are committing more violent robberies focusing on gold and jewels, often carried out by opportunists recruited via social media, Europol said in a report published last month.

• Read our visual deep-dive into the Louvre theft here

Two thieves broke into the Renoir museum on the French Riviera early on Tuesday, stealing four works of art, before dropping one. Here's what we know so far:

• The museum's alarm went off 5.48am local time, according to mayor Bryan Masson
• Police arrived five minutes later - and the thieves have not been caught

• The perpetrators were captured on CCTV fleeing from the museum

• The mayor did not identify the paintings that were stolen, but French media reports they have an estimated value of 9 million euros ($7.7m; $10.5m)

Image source, AFP via Getty Images

Police are at the Renoir museum in Cagnes-sur-Mer on the French Riviera this morning, after artwork worth millions of euros were stolen.

The incident happened shortly before 6am, with the thieves dropping one of four paintings as they fled.

These are the latest pictures coming to us, with officers are stationed outside the museum's entrance.

Image source, AFP via Getty Images

Here is the mayor of Cagnes-sur-Mer, Bryan Masson's statement in full, translated from French:

"This morning, two individuals broke into the Renoir Museum and stole four works of art.

"The museum's alarm was triggered at 5:48 a.m. At 5:53 a.m, just five minutes later, our municipal police were on the scene.

"Identified by the city's CCTV cameras, the two individuals fled, abandoning one of the stolen paintings.

"Since this morning, both the municipal and national police have been deployed to the site.

"The perpetrators are being actively sought, and the investigation is ongoing.

"Attacking the Renoir Museum is attacking a part of the history and heritage of #CagnesSurMer. These events are particularly serious.

"They also confirm the urgent need to implement the comprehensive plan to secure our museums and protect our works of art, a plan to which I have committed.

"We will dedicate all necessary resources to better protect this heritage, which belongs to all the residents of Cagnes."

Two thieves have broken into an museum dedicated to French impressionist painter Pierre-Auguste Renoir, stealing four works of art - including one which they dropped as they fled.

The mayor of Cagnes-sur-Mer, located in the south of France, says the estimated value of the stolen works is 9 million euros ($7.7m; $10.5m), according to the AFP news agency.

This is a breaking news story - stay with us as we bring you live updates.