TEMPO.CO, Jakarta – A museum theft has occurred again. Thieves stole more than 1,000 items from the Oakland Museum of California’s collection on October 15, 2025.

Oakland Museum Director Lori Fogarty said on Thursday, October 30, 2025, that she was releasing details of the missing items to the public, as they are likely to surface at flea markets, pawn shops, and antique stores. “This theft is a brazen act that robs the public of our state’s cultural heritage,” Fogarty said, as reported by Sky News.

“These items are not only a loss to the museum, but also to the public, to the community, and we hope the community will help repatriate them,” Fogarty said.

She also believes it was an opportunistic crime, not a targeted raid. “We suspect the thieves found a way to enter the building, then took whatever they could easily find, looted it, and carried it out,” she said.

Among the missing items were a metal necklace by the late artist Florence Resnikoff, walrus ivory scrimshaw, and a Native American basket. The thieves also made off with historical mementos such as pins and sporting equipment.

Experts believe some of the items may have already been sold.

John Romero, a retired police captain, told the Los Angeles Times that he expects detectives to search resale platforms like Craigslist and eBay. The items could also be sold on networks specializing in historical or collectible objects. “These people are interested in cash, not the full appraised value,” he said. “They need to sell quickly.”

The Oakland Police Department is working with the FBI’s specialized art crime unit to track down the items. The collection contains works by renowned California artists from the 18th century to the present.

The theft at the OMCA occurred four days before the audacious jewelry heist at the Louvre Museum in France. Thieves broke into the world-famous Paris museum while it was open to visitors on October 19 and made off with several of Napoleon’s crown jewels.

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