The Oakland Museum of California experienced a significant burglary on October 15, just before 3:30 a.m., leading to the theft of over 1,000 valuable items from its off-site facility. The incident has raised legitimate alarms regarding security at cultural institutions across the globe. Criminals made off with thousands of historic artifacts and jewelry, among many other treasures.
Among the stolen valuables were Native American baskets, ivory carvings and daguerreotypes. Each of these treasures has great cultural and historical importance. Stolen during the heist were laptops which were plugged into the enormous growing list of stolen property. Fortunately, none of the staff were present on the facility at the time of the break-in. Without them, the results would have been far worse.
Employees of the museum noticed the theft on the morning of October 16 and immediately called in a report of the crime. Lori Fogarty, the executive director and CEO of the Oakland Museum of California, corroborated the circumstances regarding the theft. She warned about the erosion of cultural heritage these thefts are causing, and their draining effect on the museum’s collection.
The Oakland Police Department (OPD) under pressure from the FBI and public has initiated an investigation into the burglary. In addition to this innovative funding, they’ve been working tightly with the City of Oakland. Their only priorities are recovering their stolen art and making sure justice is served. Three weeks later, the authorities still have not released information on possible suspects or developments on the case.
This sad incident points to persistent and troubling issues of museums and other cultural institutions’ ability to shield their collections. The loss of culturally important things makes us anxious. It underscores the urgent need to improve security protocols and do more to protect our most valuable artifacts.