Stolen ‘Mona Lisa’ returned to owner by police

It wasn’t the real one — but it had real value to the owner.

On Nov. 20, a downtown Kelowna business reported their replica Mona Lisa painting had been stolen. The painting had sentimental value to the business owners and staff, and they were quite upset that it had been taken.

An officer who attended looked at the security images of the suspect and immediately passed the information onto other officers.

Five days later, on Nov. 25, Cst. Gauthier and Cst. Boutin of the Kelowna RCMP Community Safety Unit were on foot patrol in the downtown when they saw a man who matched the description of the suspect. They approached the man and he admitted to being in possession of the stolen painting. The officers seized the painting and returned it to a grateful owner.

“In this particular case, having the painting returned was more valuable to the owner than proceeding with charges,” said Cpl. Jocelyn Noseworthy of the Kelowna RCMP. “This is an example of our officers using their discretion to work towards the best end goal for the victim. At the end of the day, the painting is back where it belongs and the owners are happy.”