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‘We’re Devastated’: Suspects Steal ‘Large Quantity’ Of World War Two Artifacts, Police Say

Field Marshal Erwin Rommel

(Photo by © CORBIS/Corbis via Getty Images)

Ilan Hulkower Contributor
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The United Kingdom’s Norfolk Constabulary issued an appeal for witnesses to come forward about what they said was a burglary of a museum that occurred between Friday and Saturday, a press release reads.

The suspect or suspects managed to steal “a large quantity of World War 2 memorabilia” during their “untidy search” that damaged “displays” at the Desert Rats Museum, the Norfolk police said. (RELATED: Centenarian World War Two Vet To Be Married On 80th Anniversary Of D-Day: REPORT)

The alleged thief or thieves made out with World War II badges, helmets and patches, a field marshal’s baton. a German knife, brass shells, a baby gas mask and other items, according to Suffolk News. The baton belonged to General Erwin Rommel, the commander of German and Italian forces in North Africa, the BBC reported.

“We’re devastated,” museum director Paul Smith said, the Suffolk News reported. “We’re just a small museum dedicated to our British history and my heart and soul has gone into this place. It’s a legacy thing.”

“People come to visit and say ‘my dad did this’ or ‘my granddad did that’ – but now that’s been spoilt,” he reportedly continued.

Smith has been in the employ of the museum for over 15 years, the outlet noted.

Smith added that the break-in occurred in the night and that he discovered the aftermath of it in the morning, Suffolk News reported. The museum has reportedly closed for the foreseeable future as a result.

Smith observed that the alleged burglar or burglars appeared to have an affinity toward the German historical objects, the BBC reported. “Obviously, it’s the German stuff that’s highly collectable, obviously Rommel being a famous general,” he told the outlet. “It seems like they knew exactly what they were after. It’s more to do with the stuff being German and the far-right.”

Smith created a GoFundMe fundraiser for the museum. The director claimed that there was “hundreds of pounds of damages to the site.”