Queensland police recover 3,000-year-old artifacts; suspect arrested in record time

Queensland police have recovered the stolen ancient artifacts and apprehended the suspected thief just two days after the artifacts were stolen from the Abbey Museum of Art and Archaeology in Caboolture, north of Brisbane.

A 52-year-old man was arrested on Saturday after he allegedly smashed the window of the Australian history museum and flew with the ancient haul early Friday.

The stolen items included a 2600-year-old wooden cat statue, a 3300-year-old necklace, a mummy mask and a collar from a mummy. All the items have now been recovered with only minor damages.

Police located the suspected thief’s van some 50 miles from the museum in a parking lot at a ferry terminal at around 1:30 p.m. on Saturday.

The suspect was charged with breaking and entering, along with three counts of willful damage to property. 

Officials said that he did not have a fixed address; however, they refrained from sharing further details about the alleged thief.

He is due to appear in Cleveland Magistrates Court on Monday.

It remains unclear if the suspect was motivated by the movie-like Louvre Museum heist in October 2025. 

The thieves made off with artifacts worth $102 million in just 8 minutes and the majority of those stolen items have yet to be recovered.