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at least 1.4 inspiring contemplations In November, his luck ran out at a museum in Lucerne, Switzerland, and he was arrested on charges of stealing a bugle. On learning of the arrest, police said, his mother chopped up the oil paintings, which were left for trash collection, and dumped other art objects in a canal.
The case has stunned art experts because the 60 paintings and 112 objects that police say Breitwieser has admitted stealing were estimated to be worth at least $1.4 billion. Among the paintings destroyed were works by Pieter Brueghel the Younger, Lucas Cranach the Elder, Corneille de Lyon and Watteau.
His mother, Mireille Breitwieser, 51, was arrested on Tuesday on charges of possessing stolen goods and destroying art.
French investigators said that Stephane Breitwieser, 31, made no attempt to sell the stolen artworks, which came from dozens of museums in France and five neighboring countries. Instead, he kept them in a bedroom.
The police reported that Mireille Breitwieser said she destroyed the art out of anger at her son. But they said they believed that her principal motive was to remove all incriminating evidence against him. Less than one week after his arrest, nothing was found when his mother's home was searched.
According to investigators, Mireille Breitwieser admitted chopping up the oils, many of which were painted on wooden panels. She said that other art objects -- which included silver and ivory statues, 18th century porcelain and medieval weapons as well as ancien