PARIS (AP) – French police have arrested a man believed to be linked to the audacious theft of crown jewels from the Louvre Museum in Paris, authorities announced Wednesday. The arrest marks a significant advancement in the investigation into the November 2023 heist that shocked the art world and raised serious questions about security at one of the worldS most famous museums.
The stolen items, valued at an estimated tens of millions of euros, included a diamond-and-emerald necklace gifted by Napoleon to Empress Marie-Louise, jewels belonging to 19th-century Queens Marie-Amélie and Hortense, and Empress Eugénie’s pearl-and-diamond tiara.The theft has prompted a thorough review of security protocols at the Louvre and fueled public concern over the vulnerability of national treasures.
Investigators persistent thieves breached the museum’s security in less than eight minutes, utilizing a freight lift and grinders to access and shatter display cases in the Apollo Gallery. While the emerald-set imperial crown of Empress Eugénie, containing over 1,300 diamonds, was recovered near the museum shortly after the robbery, the majority of the jewels remain unrecovered.
Louvre Museum director laurence des Cars acknowledged a “terrible failure” in security following the incident and pledged the installation of enhanced surveillance cameras and anti-intrusion systems. The ongoing investigation aims to identify all individuals involved in the theft and recover the remaining stolen artifacts.
