Lupita Nyong'o's stolen Oscar gown 'recovered'
PUBLISHED ONMarch 03, 2015 6:05 AM
LOS ANGELES - The US$150,000 (S$205,000) Oscar gown worn by actress Lupita Nyong'o that was stolen last week has reportedly been found.
It was returned last Friday by the thief, who tipped off celebrity news site TMZ.com after finding out that the pearls on the dress were fake.
TMZ said the thief took the Calvin Klein dress from Nyong'o's hotel room last Wednesday after finding the door ajar. The Kenyan actress had worn the dress adorned with 6,000 pearls to last Sunday's Academy Awards.
The thief and others removed two pearls from the dress and took them to the garment district in downtown Los Angeles, where they were told they were not real, said TMZ.
The thief then took the dress back to the London West Hollywood hotel and told TMZ it was in a garment bag inside a trash bag in a bathroom. TMZ then tipped off the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department in West Hollywood, which was investigating the theft.
The Sheriff's Department confirmed that a white pearl dress had been recovered at the hotel. A spokesman said the dress "greatly resembles" the pearl-adorned gown and detectives were attempting to verify if it was indeed the same dress.