French authorities have launched a full-scale investigation after a gang of thieves carried out a daring seven-minute heist at the Louvre Museum in Paris on Sunday morning, escaping with what officials described as “priceless” jewels.
Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said the robbery took place in the museum’s famed Gallerie d’Apollon, home to the French Crown Jewels and Louis XIV’s renowned collection of treasures. The audacious thieves reportedly gained entry using a freight elevator mounted on a truck before forcing open a window with an angle grinder.
“Three or four perpetrators managed to seize jewellery of immense sentimental and historical importance before fleeing on motorcycles,” Nuñez told France Inter. “It was clearly a well-prepared, highly experienced team that acted very quickly.”
Minister of Culture Rachida Dati confirmed the robbery happened just as the museum opened to the public at 9:30 a.m. All visitors were safely evacuated, and no injuries were reported.
The Louvre, which attracts nearly nine million visitors annually, remained closed on Sunday as investigators secured the scene and began compiling an inventory of the stolen artefacts.
Authorities say recovering the items is a top priority, given their irreplaceable heritage value. “Beyond their market worth, these objects represent centuries of French history,” the interior ministry said in a statement.
