The time bandits: Mask-wearing crooks clad in black may have stolen £2.2million of historic treasure

A criminal network is feared to have targeted castles and historic sites throughout the UK – and got away with £2.2million of irreplaceable artefacts.

Among the crooked haul are treasures originally collected by the great-grandmother of the Queen Consort Camilla as well as Mary Queen of Scots’ rosary beads.

An enamel and rose gold fob watch by Cartier and gold cigarette case by Faberge are also missing in the thefts.

Items with high raw metal items, such as gold or silver, may have been melted down to make money more easily.

Five burglaries of historical venues or artefacts has seen £2.2million of treasure simply vanish

An enamel and rose gold fob watch by Cartier and gold cigarette case by Faberge are missing

It means some of those missing historically significant pieces could be lost forever. 

The audacious break-ins and thefts date back to September 9, 2019, and the most recent was just half a month ago on November 14.

One force investigating another £1million raid at a medieval castle has admitted its connection to other historical thefts ‘have not been ruled out’.

Operation Opal, the police initiative which coordinates national heritage and serious organised acquisitive crime, declined to comment.

But the nature and targets of the five crimes – coupled with the fact at least four known offenders are still missing – suggest a possible link. 

It had been all quiet at the palatial Sudeley Castle, Gloucestershire, on the morning of September 9, 2019, when four men entered the grounds.

Lookout man Clinton Bowen, 41, stayed with an accomplice outside while two others broke into the property.

They headed straight to the Royal Sudeley 1,000, Trials, Triumphs and Treasures exhibit, Bowen had cased out a day earlier.

He was identified by his DNA on a ‘snood’ which he left behind in the Castle gardens after the burglary on Sept 9th last year. Pictured: More of the jewells which were taken

Sudeley Castle in Gloucestershire was hit on September 9, 2019, when four men entered the grounds

The rosary beads and bible belonging to Mary Queen of Scots, which were taken from their display at Arundel Castle, Sussex

Other items swiped were gold and silver-gilt coronation cups and a gold and enamel baton

On May 21, 2021, Arundel Castle saw items worth at least £1million stolen during a burglary

A display case was smashed and jewellery and artefacts worth £127,000 from the Alice Keppel Collection were snatched.

Their haul included numerous snuff boxes, an enamel & rose gold fob watch by Cartier and Gold cigarette case by Faberge.

They sped off in a 4×4 vehicle but Bowen had been caught on CCTV the day earlier and a snood with his spit was found in the grounds.

He was jailed for four years in October 2020, but his accomplices and the treasures from the raid have never been found.

A 19th-century lighthouse lantern worth nearly £1million was taken and is so far untraced

It was swiped from a storage facility on the Mullacott industrial estate hit sometime overnight, but only discovered on January 24

Fast-forward 20 months and Arundel Castle in West Sussex was the scene of a strikingly similar crime.

At 10.30pm on Friday, May 21, the alarms at the property and police arrived within minutes to find priceless exhibits worth at least £1million had been stolen.

They included Mary Queen of Scots Rosary Beads, gold batons, and seven gold coronation cups dating back to the 1700s.

Police discovered an abandoned 4×4 vehicle on fire in nearby Barlavington, suspected to have been involved in the break-in.

Most recently the investigating Sussex force had released CCTV of a man wanted over the theft.

The stills show him in a snood-type mask at Clacket Lane motorway services on the M25 in Kent.

Sussex Police’s Detective Inspector Alan Pack told MailOnline: ‘Throughout our investigation, we have followed up on multiple lines of enquiry, we executed eight simultaneous warrants across three counties, we seized and examined a number of mobile phones, and we have repeatedly appealed for witnesses and information. 

Maps, mining artefacts and equipment including an Oldham photometer, used to measure the power of miners’ lamps, were taken in a break-in in Stoke

Crooks broke into the Deployment Centre at Chatterley Whitfield Colliery Heritage Centre just before 7pm on June 7

‘One suspect was arrested but has since been released without charge due to insufficient evidence.

‘While the case remains unsolved, it will continue to be periodically reviewed. This was a significant burglary involving a collection of valuable items of irreplaceable historical significance, and we are certain someone, somewhere, knows what happened.

‘We are still seeking the man pictured in these images, and we would urge anyone who recognises him, or anyone with information which could assist in our investigation, to come forward.’

It would be the start of this year before another high-value historic theft took place.

This time Ilfracombe in Devon was targeted by the crooks.

A storage facility on the Mullacott industrial estate was hit sometime overnight, which was discovered on January 24.

It was during that raid a 19th-century lighthouse lantern worth nearly £1million was taken.

The £1,500 drinking vessel was made by luxury French brand Lalique and wiped from Kent

Between November 10 and 14 Leeds Castle was struck and antique goblet worth £1,500 taken

The item weighs two tonnes and is thought to be just three left in the world.

It is made up of 12 separate brass frames with precisely cut curved glass sections.

Devon and Cornwall Police told MailOnline: ‘Regrettably we have not been successful in locating the stolen light house lantern or identifying those responsible.

‘If anyone approaches us with new information we will act on this, but in the meantime proactive investigations into this theft have ceased.’

Then in June a heritage site in Stoke was hit by criminals.

They broke into the Deployment Centre at Chatterley Whitfield Colliery Heritage Centre just before 7pm on June 7.

The thieves loaded up a trolley with £5,000 worth of historical items at the facility which is near Chell.

Maps, mining artefacts and equipment including an Oldham photometer, used to measure the power of miners’ lamps, was swiped.

All of them were loaded up into a black Peugeot car, which was parked up nearby and have not been seen again.   

Detectives investigating a burglary at Arundel Castle in West Sussex have issued photographs of a man they still want to identify

Clinton Bowen, 39, was jailed in October 2020 for his raid on Sudeley Castle. His three accomplices have never been caught

Staffordshire Police told MailOnline: ‘Enquiries are ongoing.’

And sometime after November 10 Leeds Castle was struck.

An antique goblet worth £1,500 was stolen from the site, near Maidstone in Kent, while on show to visitors.

The drinking vessel was made by luxury French brand Lalique and is extremely collectable.

Lucy O’Meara from The Art Loss Register said: ‘I think the reason why these happen is because a lot of these collections are still in very isolated locations.

‘More often than not they don’t have the same high-tech security as museums or galleries may have. They are isolated and big properties.

‘I don’t think these items are being stolen to order, I think people target these locations because of connotations that castles and stately homes have of containing valuable items.

‘A lot of these items have what we call a high raw value. In terms of historic importance, they are more valuable, but to an everyday thief, some of the gold could be melted down.

‘I think thieves are beginning to realise that with the age of the internet things like selling stolen paintings has become incredibly hard.

‘I wouldn’t be surprised if it was it was a group of people that were targeting these places.

‘Having said that, the opportunity to steal from these places are sadly quite high, so it could be different opportunistic thieves.

‘Historically things like this that have been stolen are less likely to be recovered as time goes on. The ones that have high raw value are unlikely to be still in the form they were taken in. 

‘The good news is that I think that it is getting harder to steal things like this. There is an effort now to look out for these kind of objects when they pop up.’ 

Sussex Police added on if the incidents were being linked: ‘Our investigation Operation Deuce maintains regular updates with Operation Opal, which coordinates national heritage crime and serious organised acquisitive crime across the country.

‘At the moment, Arundel Castle is not linked, but we continue to develop information, so it has not been ruled out.’

Operation Opal did not respond to a request for comment.