Major Heist at Louvre: French Police Hunt for Thieves Who Stole Royal Jewels in Brazen Daylight Robbery

Louvre museum remained closed for a second day Monday as investigations continued.

French authorities intensified their search Tuesday for the perpetrators who stole invaluable royal jewels from the Louvre museum in a brazen daylight heist.

With the museum remaining shuttered for a second consecutive day, officials revealed that 60 investigators were pursuing the theory that an organized criminal syndicate orchestrated the theft of nine jewelry pieces. One crown adorned with over 1,300 diamonds was dropped on Paris streets as the thieves made their escape.

Investigators meticulously analyzed video surveillance footage from the Louvre vicinity and major highways leading out of Paris, searching for the four robbers who fled on scooters Sunday morning.

Interior Minister Laurent Nunez stated, "There are numerous videos being examined as part of the investigators' primary approach."

As disappointed tourists rescheduled their visits to the world's most-visited museum, the seven-minute robbery reignited debates about inadequate security measures in French museums, particularly after two other institutions suffered thefts last month.

Justice Minister Gerald Darmanin acknowledged security deficiencies at the Louvre.

"What's undeniable is that we failed, since individuals were able to position a furniture lift in central Paris, elevate accomplices within minutes to seize priceless jewels, thereby severely damaging France's reputation," he told France Inter radio.

Nunez has subsequently mandated enhanced protection for cultural sites, according to his advisers.

A report from France's Court of Auditors covering 2019-2024, reviewed by AFP, highlighted "persistent" delays in security upgrades at the Louvre, with only one-fourth of a wing monitored by video surveillance.

The thieves arrived around 9:30 am (0730 GMT) Sunday, merely 30 minutes after the museum opened.

They parked a truck equipped with an extendable ladder, similar to those used by moving companies, beneath the museum's Apollo Gallery. They climbed up and utilized cutting tools to breach a window and access the display cases.

The renowned institution, home to the Mona Lisa, may remain closed until Wednesday, as it typically observes Tuesdays as closure days.

Lines of frustrated visitors extended across the museum's pyramid courtyard and beneath the tall entrance gallery arches on Monday, hoping for admission.

American tourist Jesslyn Ehlers, 38, and her husband rushed to secure new tickets.

"We're quite disappointed. We've been planning this visit for a very long time," she explained.

Carol Fuchs, another American visitor, had been queuing for over 45 minutes.

"The audacity, entering through a window," she told AFP. "Will they ever be caught? I doubt it. I think the items are long gone," she remarked.

The masked thieves dropped and damaged Empress Eugenie's crown—wife of Napoleon III—during their escape. The crown features 1,354 diamonds and 56 emeralds, according to museum documentation.

Eight priceless jewelry items were stolen, the culture ministry confirmed.

The inventory of stolen items included an emerald-and-diamond necklace gifted by Napoleon I to his wife, Empress Marie-Louise.

Also taken was a diadem formerly belonging to Empress Eugenie, embellished with nearly 2,000 diamonds, and a necklace once owned by Marie-Amelie, France's last queen, adorned with eight sapphires and 631 diamonds according to Louvre records.

Alexandre Giquello, president of Drouot auction house, stated the stolen pieces would be impossible to sell in their current condition.

The heist—which necessitated evacuating approximately 2,000 people from the museum—was likely executed by an experienced team, possibly "foreigners," according to Nunez.

Museum staff intervention forced the thieves to flee hastily, abandoning some equipment used in the robbery, the culture ministry reported.

This marks the first theft from the Louvre since 1998, when a Camille Corot painting was stolen and never recovered.

French museums have previously faced criticism for inadequate security measures, with many considered less secure than banks and increasingly targeted by thieves.

Last month, criminals broke into Paris's Natural History Museum, stealing gold samples valued at $700,000.

That same month, thieves took two dishes and a vase from a museum in central Limoges, with losses estimated at $7.6 million.