Oslo police recover stolen Ghana royal gold
Two gold objects belonging to Ghana tribal leader King Otomfuo Osei Tutu II have been found after they were stolen in
Oslo last week, Norway's police said on Friday when releasing the names of two suspects.
King Otomfuo Osei Tutu II was in Oslo to attend a conference organized by the Norwegian-African Business Association when the Ghanian crown jewels were stolen from an Oslo hotel lobby.
The jewels, reportedly of great value, were in a suitcase on a pile of luggage in the lobby and were stolen as the king's entourage was busy at the front desk.
Police recovered four gold objects in connection with the arrest of a man earlier this week at Stockholm's Arlanda airport as he tried to leave Sweden. He has confessed to being involved.
"Four gold objects were found in their possession, out of which two with certainty were part of the royal jewels that were stolen in Oslo," a spokesman for the Oslo police, Roar Hanssen, told AFP.
On Friday the police also released the names and photographs of two suspects wanted in connection with the theft.
Marcia Veronica Blas Valerio (or Maria Elena Ayma Ludena) was caught on a video surveillance camera snatching the jewels and is suspected of the theft, police said, while Jose Oblitas Vidarte Monteza was identified as her accomplice.
In a statement, the police said the two wanted suspects had also travelled to Sweden two days after the theft and said it was possible they were still in that country.
The Ashanti monarch, one of Ghana's traditional tribal leaders, is one of the country's most revered figureheads and the government regularly consults with him. Ghana became a republic in 1960, three years after gaining independence.
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King Otomfuo Osei Tutu II was in Oslo to attend a conference organized by the Norwegian-African Business Association when the Ghanian crown jewels were stolen from an Oslo hotel lobby.
The jewels, reportedly of great value, were in a suitcase on a pile of luggage in the lobby and were stolen as the king's entourage was busy at the front desk.
Police recovered four gold objects in connection with the arrest of a man earlier this week at Stockholm's Arlanda airport as he tried to leave Sweden. He has confessed to being involved.
"Four gold objects were found in their possession, out of which two with certainty were part of the royal jewels that were stolen in Oslo," a spokesman for the Oslo police, Roar Hanssen, told AFP.
On Friday the police also released the names and photographs of two suspects wanted in connection with the theft.
Marcia Veronica Blas Valerio (or Maria Elena Ayma Ludena) was caught on a video surveillance camera snatching the jewels and is suspected of the theft, police said, while Jose Oblitas Vidarte Monteza was identified as her accomplice.
In a statement, the police said the two wanted suspects had also travelled to Sweden two days after the theft and said it was possible they were still in that country.
The Ashanti monarch, one of Ghana's traditional tribal leaders, is one of the country's most revered figureheads and the government regularly consults with him. Ghana became a republic in 1960, three years after gaining independence.
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