A man accused of stealing Maurizio Cattelan’s gold toilet from Blenheim Palace, UK, visited the 18th-century stately home a day before the heist and used the infamous lavatory, the court in the ongoing trial heard recently.
Michael Jones, 39, is standing trial at Oxford Crown Court charged with one count of burglary for the 2019 theft, to which he has pleaded not guilty. Jones is on trial along with two other men: Fred Doe, 36, and Bora Guccuk, 40, who are charged with one count of conspiracy to convert or transfer criminal property, namely gold, which they deny.
Cattelan’s fully functioning 18-carat gold toilet (America, 2016) was removed from an exhibition of the Italian artist's work at the 18th-century stately home in September 2019. The toilet was insured for £4.8m.
Jones allegedly visited the palace twice before the theft on reconnaissance trips on 7 September and 13 September. Photos were found on his phone of the golden toilet, a selfie of him with the loo, and a picture of a lock on the cubicle door. Crispin Aylett KC, representing Fred Doe, asked Jones during cross-examination: “You used the golden toilet—what was it like?” Jones replied: “Splendid.”
A fourth man, James Sheen, 39, previously pleaded guilty to burglary. At the time, Jones worked for a building company owned by Sheen. According to the Daily Mail, the day before the burglary, Sheen messaged Jones saying: “You're not going to work today I have got something else for you to do.”
Prosecutor Julian Christopher KC previously told the court that the toilet was never recovered and appears to have been split up into smaller amounts of gold. Two of the men were using “car” as a codeword for the stolen gold and contact was made with a Hatton Garden jeweller, said Christopher.
The trial, which began last week, is expected to last four weeks.
