Thieves steal ‘priceless’ jewels from Louvre and escape on motorbikes

Thieves broke into the Louvre museum in France and stole what police said were "priceless" jewels on Sunday before escaping on motorbikes, according to police.

Thieves broke into Paris’ Louvre museum by using a crane and smashing an upstairs window on Sunday, stealing priceless jewelry from an area that houses the French crown jewels before escaping on motorbikes, the French government said.

The robbery is likely to raise awkward questions about security at the museum, where officials had already sounded the alarm about lack of investment at a world-famous site that welcomed 8.7 million visitors in 2024.

The thieves struck at about 9.30 a.m. (0730 GMT) when the museum had already opened its doors to the public, and entered the Galerie d’Apollon building, the Interior Ministry said in a statement.

The robbery took around four minutes, Culture Minister Rachida Dati told TF1, and it was carried out by professionals.

“We saw some footage: they don’t target people, they enter calmly in four minutes, smash display cases, take their loot, and leave. No violence, very professional,” she said on TF1.

She said one piece of jewelry had been recovered outside the museum, apparently dropped as they made their escape.

Dati declined to say what the item was, but newspaper Le Parisien said it was believed to be the crown of Napoleon III’s wife, Empress Eugénie. The jewel was broken, the newspaper said.

Interior Minister Laurent Nunez told France Inter that three or four thieves got into the museum from outside using a crane that was positioned on a truck.