Faberge egg theft case has exposed how a £2.2 million luxury object could vanish within minutes in central London, after a handbag containing one of the rarest jewelled items in circulation was stolen outside a Soho pub, triggering a criminal investigation that remains unresolved despite a prison sentence and extensive police work — reported The WP Times, citing Sky News and court reporting.
A man has been jailed after stealing a handbag containing a faberge egg and matching watch set valued at up to £2.2 million, in a case that highlights both opportunistic street crime and the vulnerability of high-value items in public spaces. The incident took place on 7 November 2024 outside the Dog and Duck pub in Soho, central London, and culminated in sentencing at Southwark Crown Court on 9 April 2026.
The defendant, Enzo Conticello, 29, of no fixed address, was sentenced to two years and three months in prison after pleading guilty to theft and multiple fraud offences. The court heard that the theft occurred shortly before 10pm, when the victim, Rosie Dawson, was standing in the designated smoking area of the pub. Prosecutor Julian Winship described the sequence of events in detail: “On November 7 2024 at just before 10pm, (Ms Dawson) went to the Dog and Duck pub in Soho. She was outside the premises in the designated smoking area, she put her handbag on the ground in between her legs, and a few minutes later she noticed her handbag was no longer there” (Julian Winship, Southwark Crown Court, sentencing hearing, April 2026).
Inside the stolen Givenchy handbag, valued at £1,600, were multiple personal and corporate items, including the emerald-encrusted faberge egg, a matching Faberge watch, a £1,500 Apple laptop, AirPods, bank cards, keys, cosmetics and cash. The Faberge items belonged not to the victim personally, but to her employer, the Craft Irish Whiskey Company, and had been transported for display at a work event earlier that evening.
The court heard that the Faberge set was part of an extremely limited global collection. According to the prosecution, only seven such sets exist, each comprising a jewelled egg, watch, cigars and a humidor. Three of these sets had previously been sold for between two and three million US dollars each, with the remaining four expected to reach similar valuations. Despite the high value of the items, prosecutors accepted that Conticello did not specifically target the Faberge pieces. Instead, the theft was characterised as opportunistic. “He wanted to obtain some easy cash,” Winship told the court, adding that the defendant did not intend to steal the Faberge egg itself but took the bag without knowledge of its contents.
This position was reinforced by the defence. Conticello’s barrister, Katie Porter-Windley, told the court: “On the night in question, it was a moment of opportunity which he took, and he is genuinely remorseful for his behaviour” (Katie Porter-Windley, defence statement, April 2026). She added: “He gave the bag to someone to purchase drugs. He had a cocaine addiction at the time.” The defence also argued that the defendant did not understand the significance of the item he had stolen. When the judge commented on the appearance of the egg, describing it as “quite extraordinary looking”, the barrister responded: “It is so extraordinary that he wouldn’t know on the face of it whether that was high value or not” (Katie Porter-Windley, Southwark Crown Court, April 2026).
However, the court emphasised the impact on the victim and the company involved. Recorder Kate Livesey, delivering the sentence, stated: “Ms Dawson described the particular shock and panic upon realising a bag containing items of such particular value owned by the company had been stolen, and the incredible stress this incident has caused her” (Recorder Kate Livesey, sentencing remarks, April 2026).
She described the offence as “opportunistic” but noted the serious consequences, including reputational and financial damage. While insurers paid out £106,700 to the company, this amount represented only a fraction of the estimated total value. The timeline of events following the theft played a crucial role in linking Conticello to the crime. Within minutes, at 10:12pm, Ms Dawson received a fraud alert indicating that one of her bank cards had been used for a £33.48 purchase in a nearby shop on Berwick Street. Two additional attempts to use her cards were recorded later that night at 11:30pm and 12:30am, although these transactions were blocked after the cards were cancelled.
The rapid use of stolen financial instruments provided investigators with immediate leads. CCTV footage and transaction records formed part of the evidence that ultimately connected Conticello to the theft.
Further developments emerged the following morning. “Early on Friday morning, the complainant received a message on social media from someone who had found her bank card on the ground between Soho and Charing Cross,” Winship told the court, indicating that some items had been discarded shortly after the theft.
Despite these investigative steps, the most valuable items — the Faberge egg and watch — have not been recovered. Their whereabouts remain unknown, and police have confirmed that the investigation into their location is ongoing. Detective Constable Arben Morina, who is leading the case, stated: “Conticello thought nothing of helping himself to someone else’s possessions, and he now faces a prison sentence as a result of his greed. This theft has had a significant impact on the victim” (DC Arben Morina, Metropolitan Police statement, April 2026). He added: “The defendant never explained to the police what he did with the expensive jewellery. Our investigation to find the egg and the watch is ongoing.”
The inability to recover the items has also affected legal outcomes. Prosecutors confirmed that no confiscation or compensation order would be pursued, due to the defendant’s lack of financial means. “It appears to me unlikely that the defendant is a person of means able to satisfy either of these particular prosecutorial routes available to us,” Winship said in court. The judge acknowledged that, under normal circumstances, compensation of £3,000 might have been ordered, but declined to impose it. Conticello was described as homeless at the time of the offence and remains “a man of no means”.
Additional context presented in court highlighted Conticello’s personal circumstances. The defence stated that he had previously worked as a chef but lost his job during the Covid pandemic and subsequently developed a cocaine addiction. The investigation itself extended over more than a year. Conticello was not immediately arrested for the Soho theft but was later detained in Belfast in November 2025 in connection with separate offences. It was during this process that police linked him to the earlier incident through forensic and transactional evidence. He was also known under an alias, Hakin Boudjenoune, and pleaded guilty in February 2026 to three counts of fraud by false representation in addition to the theft charge. The case remains partially unresolved as the Faberge egg and watch have not been recovered.
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Prepared using materials from Sky News, court records and UK media reporting.
