Off-duty police find looted statue in shop

Italian police said they have recovered a first century Roman statue stolen from an archaeological site in 2011 and found in a Belgian antiques shop by two off-duty Italian art squad police officers.

An Italian businessman has been referred to prosecutors for further investigation.

The Togatus statue, featuring a headless Roman wearing a draped toga, has a value of £86,000.

It was stolen from the Villa Marini Dettina archaeological site on the outskirts of Rome.

Two members of the art squad’s archaeological unit were on assignment in Brussels when they took a walk in the Sablon neighbourhood that is known for its antiques shops.

They saw a marble statue they suspected was from Italy, and confirmed their suspicions when they cross-referenced the work with a database of known stolen antiquities, a statement said.