Man Arrested For Allegedly Smashing Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum Door, Throwing Suspicious Package Inside
BOSTON (CBS) - Police have arrested a Randolph man who allegedly broke a glass door at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston and threw a suspicious package inside before taking off. Robert Viens, 48, was arrested on Commercial Street in Braintree at around 9 a.m. Tuesday morning.
Viens was wanted on a warrant stemming from the incident at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. He was also wanted on charges of receiving stolen property over $1,200 and vandalizing property in connection with a separate break-in at the Arden Gallery on January 11.
Officers responded to the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum at about 4:39 a.m. Saturday after someone smashed an emergency exit door in the rear of the building along Palace Street. The suspect rode off on a bicycle towards Longwood Avenue.
Viens allegedly threw a painting that was stolen from the gallery on Newbury Street through the broken door at the Gardner Museum. The painting was defaced and wrapped in a blanket.
Nothing was stolen and no one was hurt. A judge ordered a mental health evaluation for Viens.
"Museum Security acted quickly to prevent entry or further damage, and first responders from the Boston Police and Fire Departments responded and secured the scene and evidence," a museum spokesperson said.
The museum is famous for the unsolved 1990 heist in which thieves stole 13 masterpieces valued at $500 million.