Madonna returned - Stolen Lottery Money next in line

Leonardo da Vinci painted several versions of The Madonna of the Yarnwinder - the original painted in 1501 seems to have been mislaid.

Several later versions exist of which one was stolen from Drumlanrig Castle the home of the recently deceased Earl of Buccleuch - Walter Francis John Scott, 9th Duke of Buccleuch, 11th Duke of Queensberry (b. 1923) Eton and Christ Church,Oxford.He owned five major landed Estates, his estimated personal fortune of £55m was supplemented by a further c.£400m held by the Buccleuch Group, his holding company.

On 27th August 2003 two bogus tourists visiting Drumlanrig Castle overpowered the guide, Alison Renwick, a student on a summer job, with a knife, in the oak panelled room where the painting was displayed and pulled the painting from the wall.With the alarms ringing the thieves scarpered trhough a window - evading CCTV cameras and shinned down an outside wall watched by 2 NZ tourists -

"Don't worry love, we're the police. This is just practice," one of the two martly dressed rogues said, as the two sauntered across the lawn towards their White Volkswagen Golf car and drove off - it was later found abandoned nearby. The FBI listed it as one of the top ten stolen artworks with a value of £30 Mn pounds.

Today Det Ch. Insp Mickey Dalgleish spearheaded a sting when 4 men were arrested in a meeting of 5 people in Glasgow to interrupt a sale of the antique 3 were from Lancashire and one from Glasgow.

The belted Earl's heirs and successors will no doubt be relieved .. also relieved that the theft of Lottery money by the Duke went unnoticed and unpunished.

Buccleuch BioEnergy Ltd., is part of the Buccleuch Group and on January 3rd 2005, Buccleuch BioEnergy was awarded a tax free grant to develop the business of £571,933 from the Big Lottery renewable Energy Fund to "to develop the business ."

Quite why the business enterprises of fabulously rich businesmen receive public money is beyond many people. See post here Droit de seigneur Tuesday, October 25, 2005 for more information.

Perhaps now the Duke's heirs have his picture back , can we have our money back ?