The Louvre theft was the work of petty criminals, not organized crime.
Paris prosecutors said on November 2nd that the theft of historic jewelry worth $102 million (approximately €88 million) from the Louvre Museum last month was the work of a group of local amateur "petty criminals," not a sophisticated organized crime gang.
The audacious theft occurred on the morning of October 19th. Two men, driving a mobile lifting vehicle parked outside the Louvre Museum, climbed to the second floor, smashed windows, and used an angle grinder to break into display cases. The two suspects then escaped on scooters driven by two accomplices waiting nearby. The entire theft took less than seven minutes.
Speaking on FranceInfo radio, Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau said that four suspects have been charged and detained. Three of them are suspected of being part of the group directly involved in the robbery, while the fifth is the girlfriend of one of the suspects.
"This isn't exactly everyday criminal activity, but it's the kind we don't usually associate with the highest levels of organized crime," said Ms. Beccuau.
Prosecutors emphasized that the suspects were "clearly locals" and all lived in Seine-Saint-Denis, a low-income area north of Paris.
The hypothesis that the thieves were amateurs arose after they left a series of mistakes at the scene. Most notably, they dropped the most valuable item – Queen Eugenie's crown, made of gold, emeralds, and diamonds.
In addition, the group left behind tools, gloves, and other items, and failed to burn the ladder truck they used for the break-in before escaping.
A week after the burglary, police arrested two men suspected of breaking into the Louvre. They were a 34-year-old Algerian man who had lived in France since 2010, and a 39-year-old man who was already under judicial supervision for organized theft. Ms. Beccuau said both had "partially admitted" to involvement.
On October 29, two suspects, a 37-year-old man and a 38-year-old woman, were arrested and charged on November 1.
According to prosecutors, the 37-year-old man's DNA was found in the ladder truck. He has a "notorious" criminal record with 11 prior convictions for various offenses, including theft. The 38-year-old woman is the suspect's girlfriend, and they have a child together.
Both of the latest suspects deny any involvement. BFM reported that the woman broke down in tears upon hearing she would be detained, exclaiming, "I'm scared for my children, and for myself too."
Although three-quarters of the thieves are believed to have been arrested, the entirety of the historic jewelry, valued at $102 million, remains missing.
French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez told Le Parisien that the last remaining suspect, who is still at large, may be the mastermind behind the theft. French police are continuing their investigation and searching for the remaining suspect and the stolen artifacts.