Watch: Five-Minute Heist: The £4.8m Golden Toilet Stolen in Daring Raid

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The theft of a solid gold lavatory worth £4.8 million from Blenheim Palace was carried out in a meticulously planned operation that took just five minutes, a court has heard. Five men stand accused of stealing the 18-carat gold artwork, titled *America*, created by Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan. The fully functioning toilet had been installed only days before its disappearance in September 2019.  

CCTV shows raiders carrying £4.8m gold toilet out of Blenheim Palace.

The toilet was stolen in September 2019 and has never been recovered. Two of the suspects are on trial, and a third person pleaded guilty. pic.twitter.com/6SyYw4qC6J

— T_CAS videos (@tecas2000) February 25, 2025

 

Oxford Crown Court was told that the burglary was carefully orchestrated and could not have been executed without extensive preparation. Prosecutor Julian Christopher KC described the event as an "audacious raid" and detailed how the men arrived at the stately home in Oxfordshire in two stolen vehicles—a VW Golf and an Isuzu truck—shortly before 5 a.m. on September 14.

 

They smashed through locked wooden gates, drove across a field to the palace’s front steps, and broke in through a window. Once inside, they headed directly to the cubicle where the toilet was installed, broke down its wooden door, unplumbed the fixture, and made their escape—all within a matter of minutes. Water poured from the severed pipes as they fled.  

 

The court heard that sledgehammers were abandoned at the scene. Despite investigations, the golden toilet has never been recovered and is believed to have been melted down and sold in parts.  

 

One of the accused, Michael Jones, 39, from Oxford, pleaded not guilty in January to stealing the artwork. Prosecutors allege that he was involved in reconnaissance, having taken a photograph of the lavatory the day before the burglary. Two other defendants, Frederick Sines, 36, also known as Frederick Doe, from Winkfield, Windsor, Berkshire, and Bora Guccuk, 41, from west London, deny conspiracy to transfer criminal property. The prosecution claims they assisted another suspect, James Sheen, in selling portions of the stolen gold in the weeks after the heist.  

 

Sheen, 40, from Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, has already pleaded guilty to burglary, conspiracy to transfer criminal property, and one count of transferring criminal property. His guilty plea was entered at Oxford Crown Court in April 2024.  

 

"The work of art was never recovered. It appears to have been split up into smaller amounts of gold and never recovered," Christopher said. The case continues as the court examines the evidence surrounding one of the most brazen art heists in recent history.

 

Based on a report by The Times  2025-02-24

 

 

 

[nauseus]

Looks like copper to me....but who gives a poop? 💩

[The Old Bull]

Oh crap.

[J Branche]

People struggling to eat and have a place to live and some idiot wants to show how rich he is by installing a gold toilet.  

 

If it wasn't stolen then it would have been stolen soon after with their Temu security system protecting it.

[Gsxrnz]

Aesthetically, the chrome plated bog roll holder lets the artwork down somewhat. 

[PETERTHEEATER]

Think of it this way. Some Indian tourist strolling Pattaya Beach has part of a crapper around his neck.