Thief who stole handbag from London pub containing rare Fabergé egg worth over £2million jailed
Enzo Conticello has been sentenced to two years and three months for the theft of the unexpectedly valuable bag
A thief who stole a handbag containing a rare Fabergé egg and matching watch worth more than £2 million has been jailed.
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The Givenchy handbag was swiped at a busy pub in Soho, London, in November 2024, by Enzo Conticello.
The bag contained the emerald-encrusted Fabergé items alongside a laptop and bank cards - and belonged to whisky executive Rosie Dawson.
The priceless items belonged to Ms Dawson’s employer the Craft Irish Whisky Company and had been on display at an event earlier that day.
The 29-year-old, of no fixed address, previously admitted to stealing the handbag from the victim and using stolen bank cards.
Conticello, who is also known as Hakin Boudjenoune, pleaded guilty to the offences in February.
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Shocking footage released today shows the moment the thief nabs the bag from underneath a chair at the Dog and Duck.
He originally tried to steal another customer’s bag before heading outside and taking Ms Dawson’s handbag that had been left on the floor.
The egg and watch are part of a limited-edition run of matching items produced by the exclusive Russian jewellery house.
The court heard that the items had a minimum value of $2.8 million (£2 million) and remain missing.
Faberge eggs are so valuable due to their incredible rarity and history. The Winter Egg, made in 1913 for Tsar Nicholas II, became the most expensive egg ever when it sold at auction last year for £23 million.
After he admitted to the charges, Judge Martin Griffiths said: “I expect it was probably quite a surprise to you when you discovered that egg.”
Conticello's defence lawyer insisted today that the thief had “absolutely no idea” of the items’ value, and that he gave them away.
He instead used the stolen credit cards to buy cigarettes and a drink in a nearby Co-op and a Nisa Local
Conticello was sentenced today to two years and three months in jail.
The police continue to appeal for information about the missing Faberge items.
