PARIS (AP) – A week after a robbery that shocked the world and sparked a massive investigation, law enforcement and police officials announced Sunday that two suspects have been arrested in connection with the theft of the Crown Jewels from the Louvre Museum in Paris.
Investigators made the arrests on Saturday night, the Paris prosecutor’s office said, adding that one of the detained men was preparing to leave the country from Paris-Charles de Gaulle airport.
French media outlets BFM television and Le Parisien newspaper earlier reported that two suspects had been arrested and taken into custody. Paris prosecutor Laure Becuau would not confirm the number of arrests or say whether any jewelry had been recovered.
Two men in their 30s, both known to police, were taken into custody, a law enforcement official who was not authorized to speak publicly about the ongoing case told The Associated Press. He said one suspect was arrested as he tried to board a flight to Algeria. The official added that one of the suspects was identified through DNA traces. Mr Bequo said earlier this week that forensic experts were analyzing 150 samples at the scene.
The suspect could be detained by police for up to 96 hours.
special police force
Last Sunday morning, thieves took less than eight minutes to steal 88 million euros ($102 million) worth of jewelry from the world’s most visited museum. French officials explained how the intruders used a basket lift to scale the Louvre’s facade, pry open windows and destroy display cases before fleeing. The museum director called the incident a “terrible failure.”
Mr Bequo said investigators from the special police unit responsible for armed robbery, grand robbery and art theft made the arrest. In a statement, she condemned the premature leak, saying it could hamper the efforts of more than 100 investigators “mobilized to recover the stolen jewelry and arrest all the perpetrators.” Mr Bequo said further details would be revealed after the suspect’s time in custody ends.
French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez praised “the investigators who worked tirelessly to do exactly what I asked them to do and who always had my full trust.”
The Louvre reopened earlier this week after the most high-profile museum theft of this century shocked the world with its audacity and scale.
Thieves sneaked in and stole some of France’s treasures. Some liken this cultural wound to the arson of Notre Dame Cathedral in 2019.
The thieves made off with a total of eight items, including a sapphire crown, a necklace and a single earring, from a set related to 19th-century queens Marie Amélie and Hortense.
Also taken were the emerald necklace and earrings worn by Empress Marie Louise, Napoleon Bonaparte’s second wife, as well as the reliquary brooch. Empress Eugénie’s diamond crown and her large corsage ribbon brooch (an imperial ensemble of rare craftsmanship) were also part of the spoils.
One piece, Eugénie’s crown set in emeralds containing more than 1,300 diamonds, was later found outside the museum, damaged but repairable.
Visitors and passersby at the Louvre expressed relief when they heard the news of the arrest on Sunday.
“This is important for our tradition. After a week, it feels a little late and you wonder how something like this could happen. But it was important that they were caught,” said Freddie Jacme.
“I think the important thing now is whether they can recover the jewelry,” Diana Ramirez added. “That’s what really matters.”
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Petrequin reported from London.
