Suspects in the Wild Louvre Jewel Heist Have Been Arrested

Last week, French thieves absconded with some of the French Crown Jewels from the Galerie d’Apollon at the Louvre. The value was estimated to be over $102 million. The caper was as low-tech as you could get—they rolled in with a furniture lift to gain entry into the viewing room. That’s it. The entire operation took around seven minutes. The thieves wore yellow vests to give the impression they were construction workers or museum staff. Now, some suspects have been arrested by police, though we don’t know if the jewels were recovered (via WaPo):

Suspects have been arrested in the Louvre Museum heist, the Paris prosecutor said Sunday, a week after thieves broke into the Paris museum and stole thousands of jewels and diamonds estimated to be worth more than $100 million. 

Paris Public Prosecutor Laure Beccuau did not disclose the number of people arrested or identify them. The arrests were made Saturday evening local time, Beccuau said in a statement, adding that one of the men arrested was preparing to leave the country from Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport. 

It was not clear whether officials have recovered any of the stolen jewelry. The Louvre estimated the total value of the stolen jewels — some of which were owned by Empress Marie Louise, the second wife of Napoleon Bonaparte, and French royals — to be $102 million. Experts say the pieces were most likely dismantled or transformed as quickly as possible to avoid detection. 

[…] 

“We failed,” French Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin said last week, adding that the robbery painted a “deplorable image of France.” 

[…] 

On Sunday, after French media reported details about the arrests, citing anonymous sources, top officials expressed concern that it could hamper the investigation.

 I can’t believe this happened. They just used a lift in broad daylight and waltzed away. 

Last week, French thieves absconded with some of the French Crown Jewels from the Galerie d’Apollon at the Louvre. The value was estimated to be over $102 million. The caper was as low-tech as you could get—they rolled in with a furniture lift to gain entry into the viewing room. That’s it. The entire operation took around seven minutes. The thieves wore yellow vests to give the impression they were construction workers or museum staff. Now, some suspects have been arrested by police, though we don’t know if the jewels were recovered (via WaPo):

Suspects have been arrested in the Louvre Museum heist, the Paris prosecutor said Sunday, a week after thieves broke into the Paris museum and stole thousands of jewels and diamonds estimated to be worth more than $100 million. 

Paris Public Prosecutor Laure Beccuau did not disclose the number of people arrested or identify them. The arrests were made Saturday evening local time, Beccuau said in a statement, adding that one of the men arrested was preparing to leave the country from Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport. 

It was not clear whether officials have recovered any of the stolen jewelry. The Louvre estimated the total value of the stolen jewels — some of which were owned by Empress Marie Louise, the second wife of Napoleon Bonaparte, and French royals — to be $102 million. Experts say the pieces were most likely dismantled or transformed as quickly as possible to avoid detection. 

[…] 

“We failed,” French Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin said last week, adding that the robbery painted a “deplorable image of France.” 

[…] 

On Sunday, after French media reported details about the arrests, citing anonymous sources, top officials expressed concern that it could hamper the investigation.

 I can’t believe this happened. They just used a lift in broad daylight and waltzed away.