Spectacular robbery at the Louvre Museum: priceless jewels stolen in just seven minutes

A team of professional thieves managed to break into the famous Louvre Museum in Paris on Sunday morning and steal jewels of a value considered "priceless". The incident, which took place in the heart of the French capital, led to the closure of the institution "for exceptional reasons", according to an official announcement from the museum. According to information obtained by AFP from sources close to the investigation, the robbery took place between 09:30 and 09:40 (local time). Three or four criminals entered the museum using a platform mounted on a truck, which allowed them access to the Apollo Hall, one of the most prestigious sections of the Louvre, where royal jewels and rare artifacts are exhibited. "The thieves operated with amazing precision - everything took just seven minutes", said Laurent Nunez, the French Minister of the Interior. They targeted two main display cases, where gold, silver and precious stones were displayed, using small saws and specialized tools. After committing the crime, they quickly fled, and an abandoned scooter was found near the museum, possibly used in the final retreat.

• First discoveries and hypotheses

A few hours after the robbery, Culture Minister Rachida Dati announced that one of the stolen jewels had been recovered in the area around the museum. "A jewel was found in the vicinity of the Louvre and is currently being evaluated,” Dati told TF1, adding that European museums are increasingly becoming "targets of organized crime.” French authorities have opened an investigation into organized theft and criminal association, coordinated by the Criminal Police's Anti-Banditry Brigade (BRB), with the support of the Central Bureau for Combating Trafficking in Cultural Property (OCBC).

• A world-class museum, again in the sights of thieves

The Louvre Museum, the most visited museum in the world, with almost nine million visitors in 2024 (80% of whom are foreigners), confirmed on the X platform (formerly Twitter) that it is suspending its activity "for exceptional reasons", without providing further details. The event brings back into question the vulnerability of cultural heritage to organized crime networks, which increasingly target works of art and collectible jewelry. Rachida Dati stressed that "museums have become targets, and protecting cultural heritage requires increased international cooperation". Sunday's incident is reminiscent of the famous theft of the "Gioconda", committed in 1911 by the Italian Vincenzo Peruggia, who stole Leonardo da Vinci's painting from the same museum. The work was only recovered after two years. Since then, the Louvre's security systems have been constantly modernized, and the museum is considered one of the best protected in the world. However, experts warn that modern technology cannot completely eliminate the risk of planned and coordinated human actions. Art protection experts estimate that the black market in stolen cultural goods generates more than $6 billion annually, making it the third most profitable criminal activity after drug and arms trafficking. "Stolen art objects become currency on the black market, used in illegal transactions or money laundering,” a museum security expert told AFP. The investigation is ongoing, and French authorities have not provided details on the exact value of the damage.