NZ police recover swallowed Fabergé pendant from alleged thief after six-day wait

It was retrieved through ‘natural means’, with no medical intervention necessary

New Zealand police have successfully recovered a £14,000 Fabergé pendant, allegedly swallowed by a man in a jewellery store, following six days of meticulous monitoring.

The item, worth NZ$33,000, was retrieved on Thursday night through natural means, a police spokesperson confirmed.

They added that no medical intervention was required.

The 32-year-old man, whose identity has not been publicly disclosed, has remained in police custody since his arrest on 28 November.

He was apprehended inside Partridge Jewellers in Auckland just minutes after he reportedly consumed the ornate, jewelled octopus pendant.

The distinctive piece of jewellery is a limited-edition Fabergé egg pendant, inspired by the 1983 James Bond film Octopussy. The movie's plot famously revolves around a jewel-smuggling operation involving a counterfeit Fabergé egg.

An officer displaying a recovered diamond-encrusted pendant in Auckland after keeping a six-day watch over the man accused of swallowing it (NEW ZEALAND POLICE/AFP via Getty)

A photograph released by New Zealand police on Friday offered a glimpse of the recovered pendant.

It showed a gloved hand holding the item, which was still attached to its long gold chain and bore an intact price tag.

Both the necklace and the man will continue to be held in police custody, a spokesperson said.

The man is due to appear in the Auckland District Court on 8 December.

He made a first appearance on 29 November, when he did not enter a plea to a charge of theft.

Faberge x 007 Special Edition Octopussy Egg Surprise Locket (Faberge)

Since then, officers had been stationed round the clock with the man to wait for the evidence to emerge.

“Given this man is in police custody, we have a duty of care to continue monitoring him given the circumstances of what has occurred,” Inspector Grae Anderson said in a statement on Wednesday.

The store’s website says the egg, one of only 50 made, is crafted from gold, painted with green enamel and encrusted with 183 diamonds and two sapphires.

The pendant is 8.4cm (3.3 inches) tall and is mounted on a stand.

“The egg opens to reveal an 18ct yellow gold octopus nestled inside, adorned with white diamond suckers and black diamond eyes,” an item description said.

“The octopus surprise pays homage to the eponymous antagonist at the center of the Octopussy film.”