Theft at the MAK in Vienna: controversy over security after the attack on the Van Cleef & Arpels necklace

Three days after the theft of the diamond necklace from the Museum of Applied Arts in Vienna (MAK), there is controversy over the security of the "Glanzstücke" exhibition. A visitor, interviewed by "Presse", claims that upon entry there were no checks on the bags and that, after the window was smashed, no alarm was triggered. "There were no security measures, no bag checks, nothing," the woman said, contesting the reconstruction of the museum.

The general director of the MAK, Lilli Hollein, had instead spoken of "very high safety standards" and of a detailed plan prepared for the exhibition. The visitor reported that she came in with a rather large bag without being checked. Shortly after seeing the Van Cleef & Arpels necklace, he heard "a very loud and dull noise".

The partition walls of the exhibition, he said, would have vibrated from the blows. "But why doesn't any alarm go off?" she asked. A visitor who arrived from the direction of the noise reportedly told her that someone was breaking a window. Once the shots were over, the woman returned to the scene and saw the damaged display case.

According to his testimony, there were still no security guards or other museum employees. The visitor also claims that, at that moment, it would have been possible to approach other shop windows and take other jewels, including some earrings. Only later would an employee ask her to leave the exhibition. The woman then said she left the museum without being questioned and without meeting police officers.

“All the visitors kept moving into the other rooms or going out,” he reported. After the coup, the MAK tightened controls. Metal detectors have been installed at the entrance and bags and backpacks must be left in the cloakroom. The new measures will remain at least until the exhibition closes on September 27 and could be extended. Before the robbery, the museum said it had set up ten security personnel and a video surveillance system. After the theft, the Mak had claimed that the employees had reacted "calmly", following the established procedures. The attack occurred Thursday afternoon. Two men, armed with a gun and hammer, broke a shop window and took away the precious necklace of the French jeweler Van Cleef & Arpels.

The escape lasted a few minutes. The two alleged robbers are now wanted internationally. The Landeskriminalamt released their photographs. Austrian police did not provide further details on the investigation. Meanwhile, the issue of security remains. And above all a question, repeated by the witness after hearing the shots: "Why didn't the alarm go off?"