Listening

Warm Up

Helpful Words and Phrases

Listen and repeat.

  1. a heist
    • ex. During the museum heist, the thieves took several valuable paintings.
  2. an artifact
    • ex. Scientists found rare artifacts buried under the old temple.
  3. cover (one’s) tracks
    • ex. The criminals used fake names while selling the stolen items to cover their tracks.
  4. monetize
    • ex. Our company wants to monetize its new mobile app through ads.
  5. ransom
    • ex. The hackers hacked the bank’s system and asked for a lot of money as ransom.

Article

Read the article below and answer your tutor's questions.

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After a bold heist at the Louvre Museum in Paris, experts warned that the stolen artifacts could be melted or broken into smaller parts. The missing pieces are worth more than $100 million (about ¥15.36 billion). According to some experts, these new pieces could then be sold as part of a new necklace, earrings, or other jewelry, making the artifacts harder to find.

Art crime expert Erin Thompson said that thieves often change the form of stolen items to cover their tracks. Still, doing this decreases the value of the stolen jewelry, so it cannot be sold for a big price. Once the jewelry is melted or broken into smaller pieces, it loses much of its history and value. Former FBI detective Robert Wittman explained, “The real art in an art heist isn’t the stealing. It’s the selling.”

At the same time, police say getting such treasures back can take years. In some cases, some criminals try to monetize stolen art by asking for money as ransom or selling it on the black market. Meanwhile, others are caught before they can make any profit. 

This material was based on an article by The Associated Press.

Discussion

Choose a topic and discuss the questions with your tutor.

Heists

  • What was a big heist in your country that was reported in the news (ex. a bank heist, a museum heist)? Discuss.
  • Former FBI detective Robert Wittman said, “The real art in an art heist isn’t the stealing. It’s the selling.” Do you agree with him? Why or why not? Discuss.
  • How do you think the bold heist might affect the Louvre Museum and its visitors? Discuss.

Getting Back Stolen Art and Treasures

  • In your opinion, is it impossible to get back the stolen jewelry from the Louvre? Why do you say so? Discuss.
  • In your opinion, should the government offer a reward for information about stolen art? Why or why not? Discuss.
  • If given the chance, would you want to be part of the team trying to get the stolen jewelry back? Why or why not? Discuss.