Wizard wheeze

A pair of ruby slippers worn by Judy Garland in The Wizard of Oz

has been recovered by the FBI in a sting operation 13 years after being stolen.

The shoes, often said to be among the most valued props in movie history, were taken from a Minnesota museum in 2005. At the time of the theft, the pair was insured for $1 million (£800,000). The FBI said a man approached the insurers and said he had information about how the shoes could be returned. Agents then managed to recover them. The slippers’ authenticity was verified by comparing them with another pair at the Smithsonian’s American History Museum. It is one of at least four pairs of the shoes.