Four individuals have been arrested in connection with the investigation into the theft of valuable jewellery from the Louvre Museum that occurred last month, as confirmed by the Paris prosecutor’s office. The arrests, made on Tuesday, involved two men aged 38 and 39 and two women aged 31 and 40, all of whom hail from the greater Paris area. Reports indicate that one of the newly arrested individuals may be the last member of a gang implicated in the crime. Prior to this, three suspects were already arrested and charged.
Authorities are currently permitted to question the arrested individuals for up to 96 hours. As of now, the stolen jewellery, valued at €88 million (approximately £76 million or $102 million), remains unaccounted for since its theft on October 19.
Previously, four suspects, comprising three men and one woman from the Paris region, were charged in relation to the heist. A 38-year-old woman was charged with complicity in organised theft and criminal conspiracy earlier this month, while a 37-year-old man faced charges for theft and criminal conspiracy. Both have denied their involvement.
The theft occurred when the group used a stolen vehicle-mounted lift to access the Galerie d’Apollon via a balcony adjacent to the River Seine. They employed a disc cutter to break open display cases containing the jewellery. The thieves managed to escape within four minutes, first on scooters and then in cars. While one item—a crown—was dropped during their getaway, eight other pieces, including a notable emerald-and-diamond necklace once owned by Empress Marie-Louise, were taken.
Following the theft, it was noted that the only camera monitoring the Galerie d’Apollon was positioned away from the entry point used by the thieves. The museum’s director acknowledged lapses in security measures, while Louvre president Laurence des Cars stated the need for increased investment in security had been consistently communicated since she took office in 2021. In response, security protocols around cultural institutions in France have been heightened, and some of the museum’s most valuable jewels have been moved to the Bank of France.
Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cr5zm7n8ngpo?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss