[MSN] Norway. The man reputed to have provided police with information linking the organizer of the NOKAS (Norwegian Cash Service) robbery and the theft of two Edvard Munch masterpieces has been found dead at a hospice.

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Informer found dead

The man reputed to have provided police with information linking the
organizer of the NOKAS (Norwegian Cash Service) robbery and the theft of two
Edvard Munch masterpieces has been found dead at a hospice.
David Toska has been depicted as the criminal mastermind behind the NOKAS
case.

PHOTO: HANS O. TORGERSEN:
http://www.aftenposten.no/english/local/article1551859.ece
 

In a hidden camera interview with a policeman who had gained his trust, the
now deceased 27-year-old said that David Toska, the man known as the
mastermind behind the commando-style NOKAS heist in Stavanger, ordered the
theft of the Munch paintings in order to overload investigators. 

The NOKAS robbery resulted in the shooting death of a police officer, an
extremely rare occurrence in the country, and sparked the largest and
costliest crime investigation in Norwegian history.

The information about the hidden camera footage leaked out to the Norwegian
media on Wednesday afternoon, prompting the court where the NOKAS appeals
trial is underway to close doors and assess what should be done with the
evidence. The court ruled Thursday that only evidence limited to the NOKAS
trial would be heard.

The jury, public and press were sent into the corridors while defense
lawyers, prosecutors and judges discussed the nature of the evidence for
half an hour, before deciding they needed to continued the process on
Thursday. One question is whether the evidence should be restricted to use
in the Munch theft case.

According to reports in Norwegian newspapers, the 27-year-old claimed that
two of the NOKAS suspects were not involved in the robbery and that the
money remains safely hidden and not widely distributed as Toska has
testified.

The informant also admits to taking part in the Munch robbery and said that
one of those acquitted for a role in that crime is in fact guilty.

The 27-year-old was found dead of what police believe was a drug overdose at
an Oslo hospice, and a final autopsy report is pending that will help
authorities determine if the death was the result of foul play.

The Munch paintings were suddenly recovered just before the NOKAS appeals
trial began and how they were located remains unanswered. Toska denies any
knowledge of the Munch robbery but has admitted to his role in the NOKAS
heist.

The appeals process in the Munch robbery is scheduled for February 2007.

(Aftenposten English Web Desk/NTB)