Police continue to search for the criminal gang behind a brazen robbery at the Louvre Museum in Paris, with losses estimated at nearly €90m (£76m). The heist, which took place on Sunday morning, saw four thieves force their way into the Apollo gallery and steal eight pieces of Napoleonic jewellery. The museum's president, Laurence des Cars, is expected to face questions from the senate's culture committee on Wednesday.
Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau told broadcaster RTL that the museum's curator had estimated the losses at about €88m. The thieves used a ladder from a furniture hoist to access a first-floor window, making off with the jewels in just seven minutes. The museum has remained closed since the robbery, and it is unclear when it will reopen.
Culture Minister Rachida Dati defended the museum's security, stating that the security apparatus "did not fail". However, she added that a portion of the Louvre's renovation budget would be used to update its security system, including new CCTV cameras. The museum also refuted claims about outdated display cases, noting that the ones protecting the stolen jewellery were installed in 2019.
Investigators from a specialised unit, the BRB, are leading the inquiry, alongside the Central Office for the Fight against Trafficking in Cultural Property. Evidence left behind includes a yellow hi-vis vest with DNA traces, a crown that belonged to Empress Eugénie, and motorcycles. Beccuau warned that if the thieves disassembled the jewels, they would not realise their full value.
The French government, which acts as its own insurer for the Louvre, will not be compensated for the loss. The heist is part of a spate of museum robberies in France, including the theft of Chinese artefacts from the Adrien Dubouché National Museum in Limoges and gold worth over $1m from the Natural History Museum in Paris, where a Chinese woman has been arrested.
