Dresden manhunt underway after castle vault treasure heist

One of the most famous pieces of the collection — a 41-carat green diamond known as the Dresden Green — was not in the Green Vault at the time of the heist, police said

It is currently on loan to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.

Police in Dresden say the thieves behind the heist on the Dresden Green Vault in eastern Germany fled the scene in an Audi.

Security personnel alerted Dresden police early this morning about theft, police said. Officers then started search involving 16 police vehicles. At the same time federal police were alerted. No one has been arrested so far, and the search continues.

The suspects escaped using an Audi A6 vehicle. An identical vehicle was later set on fire in an underground car park. Forensic experts examined and secured the Audi.

Detectives are working on the assumption that the incident is connected to a fire at an electric grid distribution installation near Augustus Bridge. That fire caused the street lighting in the neighborhood of the site of the theft to fail.  

Several criminals stole artifacts of "immeasurable value" from the Green Vault in Dresden today.

We're not sure exactly what was taken — although the museum's chief said the stolen pieces include diamonds and gemstones. Here's what we know about the vault:

We learned some details about the heist from Dresden police and museum bosses at a news conference a short while ago. But many questions still remain.

Here is what we don't know so far:

Exactly what was stolen: The museum's chief Marion Ackermann said three sets of artifacts had been stolen from one display case. She said the 100 or so pieces included diamonds and gemstones, but didn't go into details about them.

The value of the heist: Ackermann said it was impossible to estimate the value of the stolen items. She added that because the items are well known, they would be impossible to sell.

Whodunnit: We have no idea who the perpetrators were. We know two culprits were spotted inside the vault on CCTV footage, but the police haven't gone into any details about who they might be or whether more than two suspects are involved.

The police said they didn't have any information to suggest that the suspects had “insider knowledge" ahead of the break-in. 

Are two nearby fires linked: The police mentioned two suspicious fires happening around the time of the heist.

One damaged an electrical box in the vicinity of the museum, taking streetlights in the square out of action.

Then, after the break-in, a report of a car on fire came in. It is unclear whether the two are related to the theft.

Marion Ackermann, director general of the Dresden State Art Collections, said the treasures stolen in Monday's raid were not insured.

She said that because the items have been in the possession of the state of Saxony for so long, they were not covered by insurance, explaining that this is standard practice in such cases.

Dresden Police say an electrical box at Dresden's Theater Square, near the Green Vault, was found burned out early on Monday morning.

The fire knocked out the street lights in the square, the police added, saying they were trying to establish whether there is any connection to the heist.

Additionally, police say they are investigating whether a car found on fire in the city following the break-in has any links with the robbery.

Authorities looking into the brazen heist at the Green Vault in Dresden Castle have named the investigation "Epaulette," according to Volker Lange of the Dresden Police.

An epaulette is an ornamental shoulder piece on an item of clothing, usually found on a uniform or ceremonial dress.

According to Saxony's Minister of the Interior Roland Wöller, the police have formed a special commission to investigate the theft.

A number of teams have been deployed to the scene and the museum was closed on Monday.

Police say they have no information to suggest that the suspects had "insider knowledge" of the vault, but that they are continuing to investigate.

Police say a vehicle seen parked nearby around the time of the robbery appeared to flee the scene shortly afterwards.

Lange said an alert was sent out to try to locate the vehicle, with police closing exits on the nearby motorway to try and stop the suspects escaping.

However the Dresden police official also pointed out that it would have been fairly easy for a vehicle to get from the site of the robbery to the highway within a matter of minutes.

Marion Ackermann, the director General of the Dresden State Art Collections, found herself under a barrage of questions from journalists at the news conference a short while ago.

A key question emerging: If the security guards saw the thieves on their CCTV camera and heard the alarm, why did they not intervene and stop them from escaping?

Ackermann explained that the standard security procedure at the museum is to call the police rather than intervene.

At that point, the security guards were unarmed, but could have been if they had interceded, she explained.

She added that the museum's course of action was not unusual and that other museums follow similar protocols.

The police said about 100 pieces altogether may have been stolen from the vault, including diamonds, pearls and rubies.

During a news conference, the police said one glass display case was smashed and three set of jewellery were stolen. The three sets were composed of numerous pieces.

According to Roland Woeller, a local politician, the stolen artifacts were of "immeasurable value."