&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "‘Priceless’ jewellery stolen from Paris’ Louvre museum after thieves break in")
The Louvre Museum in Paris was closed on Sunday (Oct 19) after a reported break-in, France's Culture Minister Rachida Dati said. Earlier, the world-renowned museum said that it was closing for the day “for exceptional reasons”. Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said that the jewellery stolen from the museum was “priceless”. Although it was not immediately clear what exactly had been stolen from the gilded gallery, which is home to the French crown jewels.
“A hold-up took place this morning at the opening of the Louvre Museum,” Dati wrote on X, using a French word that can also mean “robbery”. She added, “No injuries reported. I'm on site with museum staff and police.”
Hours later, the minister said that one of the stolen jewellery pieces was found near the museum. “One of the jewellery items was found near the Louvre,” she told the TF1 television broadcaster.
AFP reported, citing a source close to the case, that robbers broke into the Louvre and fled with jewellery. Nunez told French news outlets that “three or four” thieves targeted two displays in the exhibition venue’s “Gallerie d'Apollon” and completed the robbery in just seven minutes in broad daylight. The brazen theft happened just 800 metres away from Paris police headquarters.
An investigation has been opened into the incident, said the Paris prosecutor’s office. The value of the articles stolen is still being estimated.
AFP reported that at least one person entered the museum. They did not add anything about a possible theft attempt. The museum has not yet released any other statements regarding the incident.
It is reported that the thieves arrived on a scooter, armed with small chainsaws, and used a goods lift to reach the room they were targetting. The robbers arrived between 9:30 and 9:40 am.
Located in Paris, the Louvre is the largest museum in the world and has nearly 73,000 square metres of exhibition space – more than the size of ten football pitches.
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Recently, several French museums have been targeted. Last month, thieves broke into the Natural History Museum in Paris, stealing gold samples worth $700,000. In November last year, another Paris museum was targeted in broad daylight.
