Law enforcement authorities have arrested 9 individuals for stealing antique and rare books from libraries across Europe.
The criminal group is believed to be responsible for the theft of at least 170 books, causing financial damages amounting to around EUR 2,500,000 and an immeasurable patrimonial loss to society.
Some of these stolen historical artifacts were sold via auction houses in St. Petersburg and Moscow, effectively making them irrecoverable.
Over 100 law enforcement officials were deployed on the action day in Georgia and Latvia, searching 27 locations in total. In addition to arresting four suspects, officers on the scene secured over 150 books to establish their provenance. One of the books the criminals had stolen in France could already be recovered
