A man has been charged and stolen Egyptian artefacts have been recovered after a museum break-in at Caboolture, north of Brisbane on Friday.
Four artefacts were stolen from the Abbey Museum of Art and Archaeology in the early hours of Friday morning, after a man smashed a window to gain access.
Detective inspector David Harbison said a 52-year-old man had been arrested.
Mr Harbison said police initially suspected organised crime had been involved in the theft, but quickly came to the conclusion it was “quite amateurish”.
Senior curator Michael Strong and museum manager Nina Pye have welcomed the quick return of the stolen artefacts. (ABC News: Lottie Twyford)
“We established a person of interest and a vehicle of interest fairly quickly,” Mr Harbison said.
He said the vehicle was tracked to Redland Bay ferry terminal on Saturday afternoon, where most of the stolen artefacts were found in a “relatively undamaged” condition.
Mr Harbison said the 52-year-old man was located and arrested on Russell Island around 7pm on Saturday, where he was allegedly found in possession of one of the stolen artefacts.
The man has been charged with a number of offences related to the break-in and the damage of property at the museum.
Detective Inspector David Harbison said police would allege the break-in was “opportunistic”. (ABC News: Lottie Twyford)
Mr Harbison said the motive of the theft did not appear to be financial gain, and that the man had been living out of his car at the time.
The stolen items included a rare painted wooden Egyptian cat figure from the 26th Dynasty, a 3300-year-old necklace and a mummy mask that had been verified by the British Museum.
Other items including a ring and a funerary figurine known as an ushabti were damaged during the break-in.
Museum manager Nina Pye thanked Queensland police for the rapid return of the artefacts.
“We’re just really thankful to the Queensland police for how fast that was actioned and how diligent they were.”
The stolen artefacts were found in a vehicle at Redland Bay ferry terminal on Saturday. (ABC News: Lottie Twyford)
Senior curator Michael Strong said the items had sustained some damage during the theft.
“I had expected to see from the way they were being handled and the tools used to extract them that they would be smashed beyond repair,” Mr Strong said.
“It’s going to take quite a substantial amount of time and expense to repair the damage that’s happened.”
Mr Strong said the “incredibly delicate” pectoral collar had been folded and stuffed inside the mummy mask.
The 52-year-old man has been charged with enter premises and commit indictable offence by break, and three counts of wilful damage.
He will face the Cleveland Magistrates Court on Monday.