Paintings 'worth millions' stolen from museum in Italy

Three famous paintings worth millions have been stolen from a museum in northern Italy.

The works by French artists Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Henri Matisse and Paul Cezanne were taken in an operation lasting less than three minutes, police said.

The thieves targeted the Magnani-Rocca Foundation villa, south of the city of Parma, on the night of 22 March.

According to sources close to the investigation, the stolen masterpieces were Renoir's Les Poissons, Cezanne's Still Life With Cherries and Matisse's Odalisque On The Terrace.

The value of the three is worth "tens of millions euros", an investigator said.

However, Italian public broadcaster Rai reported the stolen works were worth €9m (£7.8m).

There has been no official confirmation on the combined value of the paintings.

The paintings were on the first floor of what is called the Villa of Masterpieces in the Sala dei Francesi - the Room of the French.

The thieves, wearing balaclavas, gained entry by forcing open a door and were described as an "organised group".

They were disturbed by the museum's alarm system and escaped before they could take more paintings, "which was their intention".

Investigators are assessing museum security footage.

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The Magnani-Rocca Foundation is a private museum which lies in the heart of the countryside 12 miles from Parma.

Established in 1977, the foundation hosts the collection of the art historian Luigi Magnani and also includes works by Durer, Rubens, Van Dyck, Goya and Monet.

It comes after a series of high-profile heists at major European museums, including last October when thieves stole jewels and other items worth £76m from the Louvre in Paris.

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