French authorities have arrested five additional suspects in connection with the Louvre jewellery heist, bringing the total number of people in custody to seven.
The arrests mark a significant breakthrough in the ongoing investigation into the daring robbery at the world-famous Paris museum.
According to Reuters, police carried out coordinated raids across several parts of Paris on Wednesday evening.
The suspects are believed to have assisted in the planning and execution of the heist, during which jewels valued at around $102 million (about R1.9 billion) were stolen from the Louvre’s Apollo Gallery — the section of the museum that houses France’s Crown Jewels .
The arrests follow the earlier detention of two men over the weekend, both in their thirties and known to police.
One suspect was captured at Charles de Gaulle Airport while allegedly trying to flee the country, while the other was arrested elsewhere in the capital, Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau confirmed.
Beccuau told reporters that the two original suspects had “partially admitted” their involvement in the heist during interrogation, but investigators believe a larger network was involved.
“We do not rule out the possibility of additional accomplices, including someone who may have ordered or financed the theft,” she said.
The Louvre jewellery heist occurred last week in broad daylight, when a group of masked men reportedly used a truck-mounted ladder to enter the museum through an upper-level window.
Once inside, they smashed display cases and escaped within seven minutes, taking nine items — including a diamond-and-sapphire tiara and a necklace once worn by Queen Marie-Amélie.
The stolen jewels, considered part of France’s national heritage, remain missing. The theft has raised serious questions about museum security, especially after France’s Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin admitted that multiple safety failures were under review.
“One can wonder about the fact that the windows hadn’t been properly secured, or that a basket lift was left on a public road,” Darmanin said earlier this week.
“It’s a failure that must never happen again.”
Laurence des Cars, director of the Louvre, described the heist as a “terrible failure,” acknowledging that thieves had exploited gaps in the museum’s surveillance system.
Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez praised the progress of the investigation and confirmed that security around the museum has since been reinforced.
Authorities are now focusing on tracing the stolen items, which investigators suspect may have been smuggled out of France within days of the robbery.
The French National Forensic Service is examining security footage and communication data to track the suspects’ movements and identify potential buyers in the underground jewellery market.
The Louvre jewellery heist has become a source of national embarrassment in France, drawing comparisons to the infamous 2019 Dresden Green Vault theft in Germany.
Prosecutor Beccuau said investigators are determined to recover the jewels and bring all those involved to justice. “These are not ordinary criminals,” she said.
“This was a coordinated, well-planned operation involving individuals with significant resources.”
