Louvre robbery: see the stolen jewels
Eight “precious” jewels have been stolen from the Louvre Museum in Paris. This is what it is about.
French law enforcement authorities are doing everything in their power to hunt down thieves who carried out a brazen daylight heist at the Louvre Museum in Paris on October 21st.
French Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez told France Inter radio on the morning of October 19 that the robbers smashed a window and stole eight “precious” jewels from the world’s most visited museum before fleeing on motorbikes. The museum closed its doors following the robbery and remained closed on October 21st, as it does every Tuesday.
Erin Thompson, a professor of art crime at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, said thieves who carry out this type of robbery typically dismantle or melt down easily recognizable stolen items “as quickly as possible, within hours, to reduce the chance of being caught.” That necessarily reduces some of their value, she said, but also makes it difficult to trace the items back to the museum.
A specialist police unit known as the BRB has also dealt with other serious robberies and is in charge of the investigation.
Pascal Scudrala, a former police officer with the unit, told Reuters investigators would analyze video footage, phone records and forensic evidence.
“They can have their teams working 24/7, 365 days a year, for extended periods of time,” Shukudrala said, expressing “100%” confidence that the thieves will be caught.
Meanwhile, France has ordered a security review of the Louvre, which will welcome 8.7 million visitors in 2024, and has pledged to strengthen security measures at other cultural institutions across the country. Justice Minister Gerard Darmanin admitted to France Inter radio that authorities had “failed” to keep the “precious” jewels safe.
Culture Minister Rashida Dati told M6TV: “For too long we have been thinking about the safety of visitors, but not the safety of works of art.”
What will the thieves do with the treasure?
In recent years, museum thieves have chosen to steal valuables that can be easily disassembled, rather than stealing them for their cultural value, Remigiusz Plus, secretary of the International Museum Security Advisor, told CNN.
“What we’ve definitely seen over the last five to seven years is more of a shift towards raw material theft,” he told the outlet.
Thompson said if the thieves who robbed the Louvre were skilled, they likely planned to recut the larger jewels.
“There’s a lot of value in history, but again, if you tried to sell something like Empress Eugenie’s crown and a few diamonds, you’d be easily caught,” Thompson said.
There is a limited number of people with the necessary skills and willing to take that risk, so if something goes wrong, the jewelry could be recovered, she said. But if the process is successful, Thompson said, the jewelry could be sold “fairly easily” and never be seen again, even if the thief himself is caught.
“It’s very rare that items stolen for material value are recovered,” Thompson said.
How the Louvre robbery unfolded
At around 9:30 a.m. local time, the robbers allegedly used a crane mounted on a truck to break into the Galeries d’Apollon, on the ground floor of the museum that houses the French crown jewels. They used an angle grinder to break a window, destroyed two display cases and fled on a motorcycle, Nunez said.
Prosecutors said the robbery took six to seven minutes and that the robbers, who were unarmed, threatened the security guard with an angle grinder. Investigators believe three to four experienced thieves were involved.
What was stolen from the Louvre?
In addition to the tiara, the eight pieces selected from the gallery also include earrings and a necklace from a sapphire jewelry set that belonged to Queen Marie Amélie and Queen Hortense, stepdaughter of Napoleon I.
An emerald necklace and earrings from Marie Louise’s set, a brooch from the reliquary, and a tiara and brooch from Empress Eugénie, wife of Napoleon III, were also seized.
The robbers also allegedly tried to take Empress Eugénie’s gold crown encrusted with diamonds and emeralds, but lost it. Paris prosecutor Laure Becuau said the crown, which had been damaged in the robbery, was found on the ground outside the museum.
“These objects have an invaluable heritage and historical value that goes beyond their market value,” the Louvre said in a statement.
This story has been updated to add new information.
Contributed by: Reuters
