THE English crown jewels They have been stolen twice, and both times returned to their place: the first in 1671, when the conspirator Colonel Thomas Blood tried to pierce them from Tower of Londonand the second in 1994 When a Italian – a Ligurian named Renato Rininoalready accustomed to small crime – he stole them from the apartments of Prince Charles. But Rinino did not realize the actual value of what he has in his hands, and shortly afterwards he freed himself of the precious: this is how this daring story that earned the thief the name of “Lupine of the Riviera”.
The theft of jewelry from Saint James’s Palace
In February 1994, the royal residence Of Saint James’s Palace to London he was covered by scaffolding for restoration work, and it is thanks to the scaffolding that Renato RininoItalian born in 1962 in the province of Savona with already several theft precedents, managed to enter one of the apartments. He will say that at the time of the theft he did not know who the rooms were introduced in. Shortly afterwards it was discovered that they were those of the then prince – and today king – Carlo of England. Rinino had only one goal: to steal something very precious, and that’s how it did.
His booty were some private jewels and some belonging to the English crown: 5 pins, 6 buttons, 1 steel wrist watch, 2 silver boxes – one of which seems to contain ears caps – and 5 pairs of twins donated by Zar Nicola I to the English royal family. It seems, but it has not been disclosed official confirmation, that in the Rinino loving there were also Fabergé jewels and private letters between Carlo and Camilla Parker-Bowles, who was not his wife then.
The most interesting part of this story is that Rinino did not notice the actual value of the jewels, and resold them to a jeweler in London, racing one other ridiculous figure.
In search of the “Lupine of the Riviera”
As soon as the news of the theft from the royal residence was released, the jeweler was suspicious: Scotland Yardimmediately alerted, stared at one Reward of 10 000 pounds For those who managed to track down the Furfante. Thus began the “thief hunt”, which was found in Liguria A few years later, no longer prosecuted because the terms of the law for arrest expired. Rinino formulated his Official excuses to Carlo that, in perfect English-styleaccepted them.
The nickname “Lupine of the Riviera“It was born for i kind ways And daring that Rinino was able to put in place, and because – after all – the story had a positive outcome. The gentleman thief appreciated so much the comparison that, apparently, attacked a sticker with his written “Lupine” to his Harley Davidson.
The “Lupine of the Riviera” died a few years later, victim of a crime for jealousy: his figure has however gone to history, almost with affection, so much so that he became the subject of a film and a podcast. The figures of the thieves, by Robin Hood Next, they have always fascinated the collective imagination and it is also true that certain stories still deserve to be told.
