One of the thieves of the Dacian treasure sells t-shirts with the Helmet of Coțofenești. The online store is registered at the prison's address
Douglas W., one of the perpetrators of the theft of the treasure exhibited at the Drents Museum in Assen, launched an online store selling clothes from prison. Among the clothing items is also a T-shirt with a printed logo inspired by the Coțofenești Helmet.
T-shirts with the Coiful de la Coțofenești printed on them/PHOTO: Bookarrest.nl
According to Chamber of Commerce data, he uses the address of the penitentiary near Schiphol airport as his postal address, writes the Dutch publication Puna.
During the trial in Assen, W., another accomplice to the theft, appeared wearing a T-shirt from his own clothing collection with a reference to the website bookarrest.nl. At the time of publication of the article, no clothing items are in stock, according to a message published on the website.
On the website, W. presents himself with an unusual message:
“My name is Douglas Chesley W. You may have heard the stories about the golden helmet, but I want to put a positive spin on them, so I created this brand.”
The name of the brand refers to Bucharest, and the website also presents information about the gold artifact, stolen along with several Dacian bracelets from an exhibition organized by the Drents Museum with objects on loan from a museum in the capital of Romania.
The theft has caused tensions between the Netherlands and Romania, where the helmet is considered a priceless heritage item. According to the Chamber of Commerce, the company has been registered since January 23, 2023, but at the beginning it had a profile of works and repairs.
In February 2026, W. converted it into a clothing store.
On Friday, June 5, the three men accused of stealing the Coif from Coțofenești and three gold Dacian bracelets were each sentenced to 47 months in prison.
“Taking into account the nature and gravity of the facts, only a severe prison sentence can be imposed”the court sent in a statement.
The theft took place in January 2025, when thieves caused an explosion to break into the Drents Museum in Assen and stole the Coțofenești Helmet, dated to the 4th century BC, as well as three Dacian gold bracelets. The objects belong to the National History Museum of Romania and were in the Netherlands as part of a temporary exhibition.
The theft caused a wide debate in Romania regarding the security conditions in which the artifacts were exhibited and the responsibility of the institutions involved in organizing the exhibition. The case was followed closely by both Romanian and Dutch authorities, given the historical and symbolic importance of the stolen objects.
Although the suspects were arrested shortly after the theft, the artifacts were not recovered until several months later.
