Suspects have been arrested in connection with last Sunday’s heist of crown jewels from the Louvre in Paris, the Paris prosecutor said on Sunday, confirming earlier media reports.
Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau did not say how many suspects had been taken into custody, but media spoke of two men.
Beccuau also lamented the fact that the information had been prematurely leaked, saying this could hinder the work of the many investigators “mobilized to recover the stolen jewels and apprehend all of the perpetrators.”
She said detectives had been able to track the thieves “in Paris and in surrounding regions” by means of public and private security cameras
Audacious robbery
Le Parisien newspaper said one suspect was arrested at Paris-Charles de Gaulle airport as he was about to leave the country by plane for Algeria on Saturday evening and another was arrested later in the evening in the Seine-Saint-Denis suburb north of Paris.
The newspaper said both men were in their 30s and known to police.
A week ago, four masked men broke into the Apollo Gallery in the Louvre, the room housing France’s remaining crown jewels, and stole eight pieces of jewellry once belonging to French queens and empresses. The heist took place in the space of eight minutes.
The total value of the stolen items has been estimated at €88 million ($102 million).
On Friday, prosecutors said investigators had recovered more than 150 DNA samples, fingerprints and other clues at the scene.
Following the news of the arrests, Interior Minister Laurent Nunez wrote on X that he gave his “warmest congratulations to the investigators who have worked tirelessly” on the case.
The museum reopened to the public on Wednesday, except for the Apollo Gallery.
Edited by: Jenipher Camino Gonzalez
