Convicted art thieves behind $24M Picasso heist jailed for raiding Peppa Pig creator Mark Baker’s mansion

A Romanian ex-con raided the $13.4 million English home of the creator of “Peppa Pig,” prosecutors said.

Radu Dogaru, 41, and Adrian Alempi, 34, are Romanian gang members who targeted the residence, court heard.

The pair broke into animator Mark Baker’s leafy south-west England home through a first-floor window, prosecutors said.

Baker and his wife had stepped out of their 12,500-square-foot residence for just 90 minutes when the break-in happened, court heard.

The intruders stole loot valued at $87,500 from the property, prosecutor Joanne Cecil told the hearing.

“The value of the stolen items was [$87,500] and included jewellery, a Rolex watch, Chanel and other designer handbags and suitcases,” Cecil said.

Both burglars were spotted at a subway station around two hours before the break-in, according to court testimony.

The men were seen at the same station after the raid carrying stolen items that included a Louis Vuitton suitcase, prosecutors said.

Investigators placed the thieves under surveillance following the subway sighting, prosecutors said. That monitoring did not stop the pair from targeting another large London residence three days later, court heard.

Officers nabbed the pair as they boarded a bus in an attempt to flee the area, authorities said. The burglars had already stuffed their bags with valuables from the scene, according to prosecutors.

A search warrant later led investigators to some of Baker’s stolen possessions at Dogaru’s property, prosecutors said. Authorities did not disclose the exact items recovered from the residence, according to the hearing.

Alempi had entered the United Kingdom illegally just one day prior to targeting Baker’s home, prosecutors said.

The defendant later pleaded guilty to entering the UK illegally before taking part in the raid, court heard.

Both men had previously served prison time for a major 2012 heist at a gallery in the Netherlands, according to records.

The pair were convicted in connection with the October 2012 theft at Rotterdam’s Kunsthal gallery, prosecutors said.

The artworks taken during that museum raid included paintings by Picasso, Matisse and Monet, court heard.

Picasso’s “Tête d’Arlequin,” Matisse’s “La Liseuse en Blanc et Jaune,” and Monet’s “Waterloo Bridge, London” were insured for an estimated $24.4 million, according to the hearing.

Dogaru received a six-year prison sentence in February 2014 for his role in the Dutch gallery theft, court records show. He was released from behind bars in either 2017 or 2018, prosecutors said.

Alempi received a five-year prison term for his part in the art theft, according to records.

Baker’s wife was left traumatized by the Valentine’s Day burglary and once mistook her husband for an intruder, Cecil told the court.

“She didn’t want to leave the house in case she came back to find it burgled again,” Cecil said.

“She said she screamed when her husband came up behind her wearing dark clothes as she thought he was a burglar.”

The proceedings culminated on Tuesday when both defendants appeared for sentencing, court records show.

Dogaru was sentenced to four years behind bars, while Alempi was handed a five-year prison term, the court heard.