London pub thief jailed after £2.2m Fabergé egg heist
London pub thief jailed after £2.2m Fabergé egg heist
A Soho pub theft ends with a two-year-plus sentence for Enzo Conticello after he stole a handbag with a £2.2m Fabergé egg and watch set to fund drugs.
A man who stole a handbag containing a Fabergé egg and watch set valued at up to £2.2m has been jailed for two years and three months. Enzo Conticello, 29, grabbed Rosie Dawson’s Givenchy bag as she stood in the smoking area of the Dog and Duck pub in Soho, London, on 7 November 2024. Inside the bag were an emerald-encrusted Fabergé egg and a watch set belonging to Dawson’s employers, the Craft Irish Whiskey Company, as well as a £1,500 Apple laptop, Apple AirPods, a £350 store voucher, keys, three bank cards, £200 of makeup, a Mulberry card holder and £20 in cash. He handed over the bag to buy drugs, the court heard.
The theft also involved Dawson’s other items and the broader haul included the stolen items described above. The Fabergé egg and watch set are part of a rare suite; the egg is one of only seven in existence, and three of those sets have fetched up to £2.25m when sold. Conticello was linked to attempting to use Dawson’s stolen bank cards in a nearby shop minutes after the theft, prosecutors said.
Southwark Crown Court sentenced him to two years and three months after he pleaded guilty to three charges of fraud by false representation and one count of theft. The recorder described the offence as opportunistic and said it caused inconvenience and stress to Dawson and her company.
Conticello – also known as Hakin Boudjenoune – admitted the fraud counts during a February hearing and was linked to the broader investigation through the bank-card incident. His actions highlight the risks facing owners of high-value luxury goods and the vigilance of police and prosecutors in pursuing fast-money thefts, especially when items have rare, market-moving value.
