(CNN) — Thieves stole four paintings from the Renoir Museum in the south of France on Tuesday, abandoning two as they fled, in the latest heist to hit the art world.
The museum’s alarm system went off at 5:48 a.m. local time Tuesday (11:48 p.m. ET Monday), and police arrived at the scene five minutes later, said Bryan Masson, mayor of Cagnes-sur-Mer, where the museum is located, in a post on Facebook.
Four of the 12 Renoir works displayed at the museum were stolen, the museum said in a statement. As the thieves fled, they were “forced to abandon” two of the paintings, the institution added.
The two missing paintings are “Madame Colonna Romano” and “Jeune femme au puits,” while “Portrait de Madame Stephen Pichon” and “Coco lisant” were recovered.
The thieves were “well-equipped and well-prepared,” Masson, who is a member of the National Rally party, told reporters.
“They were equipped with an electric saw and used it to cut through the fixtures securing the frames of Renoir’s works,” he added.
Calls for tighter security
The Renoir Museum praised the police for “their professionalism and swift response.”
“Every possible effort is being made to recover the missing works and apprehend those responsible for this break-in,” the museum said, adding that the theft “should serve as a warning about the protection of our museums, which now face a new form of organised crime targeting works of art.”
“Local authorities cannot bear the growing cost of securing their museums alone,” the museum said.
“The French State must play its full part and provide financial support to municipalities and cultural institutions, enabling them to protect their collections effectively against increasingly organised and determined criminals,” it added.
The mayor also called for tougher security measures at museums in France.
“An attack on the Renoir Museum is an attack on a part of the history and heritage of #CagnesSurMer,” wrote Masson in an earlier Facebook post. “These incidents are particularly serious.”
“We will devote all necessary resources to better protect this heritage, which belongs to everyone who lives in Cagnes-sur-Mer,” added Masson.
The Cagnes-sur-Mer town hall said in a Facebook post that the museum would be closed until further notice.
CNN has contacted the town hall and France’s Ministry of Culture for comment.
Changing tactics and targets
The incident comes nearly a year after the Louvre was targeted in an audacious raid, which saw thieves steal priceless items in just a few minutes.
Europol, the European Union’s law enforcement agency, has highlighted a shift in tactics in museum thefts, from deception and stealth to more aggressive and violent methods.
“The use of violent means could indicate the involvement of perpetrators with a new profile, distinct from those traditionally engaged in cultural property crimes,” reads a report from the agency published August 24.
“Unlike typical cultural goods traffickers, who usually avoid violence and specialise in organised property crime or the theft of cultural goods, these individuals often have histories of involvement in other types of crime.”
Thieves are also increasingly targeting items such as precious metals, gemstones and culturally significant artifacts, adds Europol.
“The choice of targets suggests strong criminal market demand and ease of illicit resale,” reads the report.
(Copyright (c) 2026 CNN. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)