Four men appeared in a Scottish court today charged in connection with the theft of a work by Leonardo da Vinci.
Madonna With The Yarnwinderwas taken from Drumlanrig Castle, near Thornhill in Dumfries and Galloway, in August 2003.
Madonna With The Yarnwinder. Photograph courtesy of London Metropolitan Police
Police retrieved the 500-year-old artwork, which has been valued at between €21 million and €57 million, in a raid on a solicitors' office in the centre of Glasgow yesterday morning.
Four men were arrested and appeared today at Dumfries Sheriff Court.
Calum Jones (52) from Kilmacolm in Renfrewshire, Robert Graham (55) of Aughton, Ormskirk, Lancashire, John Doyle (58) from Halsall, Ormskirk, and 51-year-old Marshall Ronald of Upholland, Skelmersdale, Lancashire, were charged with conspiracy to rob and extort money.
All four made no plea or declaration at the private appearance before Sheriff Kenneth Barr. They were committed for further examination and granted bail with special conditions.