Two men due to be sentenced for gold toilet heist at Blenheim Palace
The thieves are due to be sentenced at Oxford Crown Court this afternoon
Last updated 13th Jun 2025
Two men who stole a gold toilet worth approximately £4.8 million from Blenheim Palace are due to be sentenced at Oxford Crown Court today.
James Sheen, aged 40, of Wellingborough, pleaded guilty to one count each of burglary, conspiracy to transfer criminal property and transferring criminal property.
Meanwhile, a jury found Michael Jones, aged 39, of Oxford, guilty of one count of burglary following a trial lasting around four weeks.
The jury also found Fred Doe, aged 36, of Ascot, guilty of one count of conspiracy to transfer criminal property, who has already been sentenced and given a 21-month suspended sentence.
In the early hours of 14 September 2019, a solid-gold toilet, worth an estimated £4.8 million, was stolen from Blenheim Palace in Woodstock.
The sculpture, called 'America' by artist Maurizio Cattelan, was a fully functioning toilet made of 18-carat solid gold, weighing around 98kg.
The exhibit went on display at the palace two days before the burglary, on 12 September 2019, with members of the public able to book use of the toilet in a room on the ground floor.
James Sheen put in motion a plan to steal the toilet. He sent Michael Jones to conduct a recce of the palace and its grounds on two occasions in the lead up to the burglary, on 7 and 13 September.
In the latter trip, Jones bought a Blenheim Palace membership and booked to use the toilet, taking photos of the sculpture, the room it was in and potential entry and exit points for the burglary.
At 4.50am on 14 September, the raid was carried out. Two stolen vehicles, a VW Golf and an Isuzu truck, entered the palace grounds at speed.
Three offenders armed with sledgehammers and a crowbar gained entry to the palace, smashed through the solid wooden door and tore the toilet from its fixings.
They carried the toilet out of the palace, rolled it along the ground, and placed it into the boot of the VW before driving off the same way they entered.
Sheen then made plans to sell the gold which is believed to have been moved to different locations and melted down in the hours after the raid.
Fred Doe contacted Sheen and offered to find a buyer for the gold and brokered the deal.
During the deal-making, both men referred to the gold bars as ‘cars’, each worth £26,000.
Sheen made trips to London and received the cash for the gold.