According to initial reports, at around 4:00 a.m. on April 21 (local time), three people broke into the museum and took away an artifact, a Chinese Royal wine jar.

All security measures such as alarms were activated, and local police also received footage from security cameras.

Museum director Richard Veymiers said the perpetrators appeared to have been well prepared, familiar with the exits and the location of every object on display in the room, and took only a few minutes to successfully carry out the plan.

Local police, in coordination with federal police, immediately launched an investigation to find the vase and the perpetrator of the theft.

After the incident, the museum remained open to the public on April 21, however the East Asia gallery was temporarily closed.

The wine bottle mentioned above is a masterpiece from the workshop of the Chinese Royal Court during the Ming Dynasty.

Decorated with aquatic motifs, the wine bottle was acquired by Belgian industrialist Raoul Warocque during a diplomatic mission to China in 1912.