French police have arrested two suspects following the theft of historic jewelry from the Louvre Museum in Paris. One of the two men was taken into custody yesterday evening at Charles de Gaulle Airport.
One week after the sensational Crown Jewels theft at the Louvre in Paris, police have arrested two suspects. The Paris public prosecutor's office confirmed that two men are in custody on suspicion of gang theft and forming a criminal organization.
The newspaper"Le Parisien" and the magazine "Paris Match" had previously reported that one of the two had been arrested yesterday at Paris's Charles de Gaulle Airport, shortly before boarding a plane to Algiers. The arrest took place on Saturday evening. The second suspect was arrested later that evening in the Paris suburb of Seine-Saint-Denis.
The two suspected perpetrators are said to be in their thirties. According to investigators, the television station France Télévisions reported that the men, who were known to the police, were identified using DNA found at the crime scene. However, as ARD correspondent Michael Strempel reported from Paris, the arrests have so far provided no information about the whereabouts of the stolen goods.
After information about the arrests had already become public, Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau criticized the hasty disclosure of information by third parties, saying it was damaging the investigation. French Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez congratulated the investigating authorities on their swift success in the manhunt in a post on the online platform X. They had worked tirelessly,"exactly as I had asked of them," Nuñez explained.
Manhunt for four perpetrators
The police were looking for a total of four perpetrators: two of them had used a forklift to gain access to the Galérie d'Apollon of the Louvre Museum, while two others had been involved in the theft and had enabled the perpetrators to escape on scooters.
More than 100 investigators are involved in the investigation. Their number has been increased from around 60 to"more than 100" to find the perpetrators, the Paris prosecutor told the Journal du Dimanche. The investigation is being led by the Brigade for the Fight against Gang Crime (BRB) and the Central Office for Combating Illicit Trafficking in Cultural Property (OCBC).
Spectacular break-in using a lifting platform
The break-in at the world-famous museum occurred a week ago. The Louvre remained closed to visitors as a result. On Wednesday, the museum reopened for tours, with the exception of the Apollo Hall, from which the thieves stole the jewels.
According to the public prosecutor's office, the four masked perpetrators parked a truck with a lift next to the Louvre. While two of them waited on scooters by the street, the other two used the lift to climb onto a first-floor balcony and from there through a window into the museum.
In just a few minutes, the thieves broke into two display cases, stole eight pieces of jewelry belonging to former queens and empresses—including gem-studded tiaras, necklaces, earrings, and brooches—and escaped with their loot. The museum's curator estimates the value of the stolen jewelry and jewels at approximately €88 million.
