Beijing, May 11 (IANS) A thief, believed to have hidden inside the heavily fortified Forbidden City palace in Beijing, reportedly took off with art work worth over one billion yuan ($154 million).

 
 The theft at the palace museum, considered one of the biggest in the country, took place May 8 after the gallery closed, reportedly before midnight, said the China Daily.
 
 A suspect was caught on security cameras, it said.
 
 The museum confirmed the theft on its microblog, but did not speak about the value of seven stolen items borrowed from a Hong Kong museum.
 
 "They (the stolen items) are from private collections, basically gold and silver powder boxes decorated with gems of various kinds," said Wang Xiahong, curator of the Hong Kong-based Liangyi museum.
 
 The palace museum would release photos of the stolen pieces which may be on sale in the black market.