DNA and vehicle-tracking help French investigators recover stolen Renoirs and make arrests

NANTERRE, France (AP) — DNA left on a protective painting cover helped investigators recover two stolen Renoirs and uncover what they suspected were preparations for another art heist, a French prosecutor said Monday.

Four men were given preliminary charges in the investigation into the Sept. 8 theft from the small Renoir Museum in the town of Cagnes-sur-Mer on the French Riviera. The charges include organized theft and criminal association, Marseille prosecutor Nicolas Bessone said.

One painting, “Portrait of Madame Colonna Romano,” suffered a tear. The other, “Young Woman at the Well,” had slight damage to its frame, Bessone said. He estimated their combined value at 4.2 million euros ($4.7 million).

The thieves used an electric saw to cut through a fence, entered the museum through th...