When art thieves stole four Andy Warhol prints, they didn’t know that only two would fit in the getaway car

A botched art heist may have left four Andy Warhol screen prints damaged beyond repair.

On November 1, robbers broke in MPV gallery in Oisterwijk, Netherlands, just after 3 a.m., according to the Art newspaper‘s Senay Boztas. Local residents say they heard a loud explosion, followed by the sound of an alarm going off. The thieves set off explosives to break into the building, and they made off with the prints of Warhol’s Reigning queens series.

The series, created in the mid-1980s, features portraits of four prominent queens: Britain’s Elizabeth II, the Danish queen Margaret IIthe Dutch queen Beatrice and the Queen of Swaziland Ntombi Tfwala. The bright, colorful works of art would be offered for sale at an art fair in Amsterdam.

Experts say the criminals were sloppy in their execution of the crime and likely did not have a full understanding of what they were getting into.

“I think they were criminals who are not really specialized in art theft [but] saw an opportunity and thought: ‘Let’s steal them first and then see what we can do,’” art detective Arthur Brand tells the Art newspaper.

Brand is known for recovering important works of art, including a stolen Vincent van Gogh painting packed in an Ikea bag that someone delivered to his apartment last year. That story had a happy ending. But in this case, he adds, “everything went wrong.”

The use of explosives in art heists is neither common nor wise. Surveillance images show that the explosion may have damaged the works of art. Mark Peet Visserthe owner of the gallery, says the Associated pressMike Corder said the “amateurish” robbery destroyed his building and damaged several nearby businesses.

When the perpetrators tried to flee with the four works of art, they discovered that they did not fit in the getaway car. They only made off with two of the portraits (Elizabeth and Margrethe), which they had to cut from their frames. The other two (Beatrix and Ntombi Tfwala) were carelessly thrown out onto the street.

“At that moment the works are torn from the trusses… you also know that they are damaged beyond repair, because it is impossible to get them out undamaged,” Visser adds.

That’s what the gallery owner tells us Art newspaper that only a limited number of people knew that the works were in the gallery. Although he did not comment on the value of the artworks, another Warhol portrait of Elizabeth sold for more than $850,000 at Toronto’s Heffel Fine Art Auction House two years ago, according to Artnet‘s Jo Lawson-Tancred.

Still, it’s highly unlikely the thieves will see that kind of profit. Now that the prints are damaged, they may be worth less. Moreover, Visser tells the Dutch news channel The Latest News‘ Faye van Os, Tom Tacken and Juliette D’Our say that the prints are numbered and cannot be sold on the open market.

“This robbery was clearly commissioned by someone who wanted to watch it at home tonight with a nice glass of wine, I think,” he tells the publication. Artnet. “What else can they do with it now?”

Earlier this week, police arrested a 23-year-old in connection with the theft AP reports. Officials have not released any information about the whereabouts of the stolen artworks, although Visser told the news agency they have not been recovered.