British and Swiss police break up a crime ring and recover a valuable Ming vase in a sting operation

LONDON (AP) — British police say a sting operation at a London hotel helped authorities recover a 15th-century Chinese vase worth about 2 million pounds ($2.5 million) and break up the criminal ring believed to have stolen the artifact from a Swiss museum. The vase, which dates to the Yongle period of the Ming Dynasty, was one of three items stolen from the Museum of Far Eastern Art in Geneva in 2019. The Metropolitan Police Service made the announcement after a London court on Friday found two men guilty of charges related to the gang’s effort to sell the vase. A third man pleaded guilty to similar charges earlier this year, and two other men who were arrested in London are awaiting trial in Switzerland for their alleged role in the burglary. All five are from southeast London.