It's emerged Europol's warning about the rise in museum thefts reached Spain's Villena Museum (MUVI) a day after thieves broke into the institution and made off with much of the Treasure of Villena, one of the most important Bronze Age gold hoards in Europe.
On 24 August, three days before the heist, Europol, the European Union's official law enforcement agency, published a report warning that attacks on European museums were changing and highlighting criminals' growing interest in gold, other precious metals and gemstones.
