A basket lift, a cut window, and smashed displays: It took just four minutes for thieves to grab high-profile jewels and escape. The Sunday heist at one of the world’s most famous museums comes as staff members complain about overcrowding, understaffing, and strained security.
The theft took place inside the world’s most-visited museum: the Louvre in Paris.
Officials say thieves brought a lift and placed it against the side of the building that faces the Seine River. Around 9:30 a.m. Sunday, 30 minutes after the museum opened, they rode the basket lift up the Louvre’s façade. With visitors already in the museum, the thieves forced a window, cut panes with a disc cutter, and went straight for the glass display cases containing a 23-item royal collection. They shattered two cases before fleeing with priceless Napoleonic jewels.
Culture Minister Rachida Dati describes the theft as a professional “four-minute operation.”
One of the stolen objects was the emerald-set royal crown of Napoleon III’s wife, Empress Eugénie. The crown contained more than 1,300 diamonds. It was later found outside the museum, French authorities say. It was reportedly broken.
Alarms brought Louvre agents to the room. The intruders bolted, but the theft was already complete. The thieves fled on motorbikes, Interior Minister Laurent Nunez says. No one was hurt.
When the dust settled, officials found that the robbers had stolen eight objects: a sapphire diadem, necklace, and single earring from a set linked to 19th-century French queens Marie-Amélie and Hortense; an emerald necklace and earrings from a set belonging to Empress Marie-Louise, Napoleon Bonaparte’s second wife; a brooch; and Empress Eugénie’s diadem and large corsage-bow brooch.
“It’s a major robbery,” Nunez says.
The Louvre closed for the rest of Sunday and remained closed Monday. Police sealed gates, cleared courtyards, and shut nearby streets along the Seine.
Daylight robberies during public hours are rare. Pulling one off inside the Louvre with visitors present ranks among Europe’s most risky in recent history.
It also collides with recent tension at the Louvre over swelling crowds and stretched staff. The museum delayed opening during a June staff walkout over overcrowding and chronic understaffing.
Security around significant works remains tight. For example, the Mona Lisa sits behind bulletproof glass in a climate-controlled case. But Sunday’s theft shows that protections aren’t as strong for all the museum’s more than 33,000 objects. Officials say the haul is of “inestimable” historical value.
Recovery may prove difficult. “It’s unlikely these jewels will ever be seen again,” predicts jeweler Tobias Kormind. “Professional crews often break down and re-cut large, recognizable stones to evade detection.” Doing so makes the jewels effectively untraceable.
Authorities still don’t know how many people took part in the theft and whether they had inside help. French media reports there were at least four: two dressed as construction workers in yellow safety vests on the lift and two on scooters.
Forensic teams are examining the site of the crime and nearby access points. Investigators are reviewing security footage. They’re also inspecting the basket lift used to reach the gallery and interviewing museum staff.
The theft is an embarrassment for a museum already under scrutiny.
“How can they ride a lift to a window and take jewels in the middle of the day?” asks Magali Cunel, a French teacher from the Lyon area. “It’s just unbelievable that a museum this famous can have such obvious security gaps.”
The twenty-four elders fall down before Him who is seated on the throne and worship Him who lives forever and ever. They cast their crowns before the throne, saying, “Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power.” — Revelation 4:10-11
