THIS is the moment brazen thieves smashed through a glass display case in the Louvre Museum to pilfer £76 million of jewellery.
Shocking CCTV footage shows capturing the pair of burglars each shattering glass cases before stocking up on their loot.
Shocking CCTV footage shows the moments thieves smashed into Louvre exhibit cases
The October heist was carried out in just four minutes
The thieves made off with £76 million in precious jewellery
The precious jewels have not yet been recovered
In the video, one of the masked thieves can be seen using his forearm to punch through cracked glass, before reaching inside to grab three of the precious ornaments.
He then shoves the treasures into an inside pocket of his hi-vis jacket before picking up his bag, which had been sitting on top of the broken glass.
He then swiftly walked away.
The footage also catches working together to smash their way into a second, larger case, stealing valuable pieces of jewellery before fleeing the scene
The shocking heist – – only took the thieves four minutes to get in and out of the world famous museum, between 9:35am to 9:39am, in October last year.
Within a week of the bold robbery from the Louvre’s Apollo Gallery, two men in their 30s from Seine-Saint-Denis were arrested in connection with the raid.
One of the men was on October 25, trying to board a plane to Algeria.
Both men were already known to police from prior burglary cases.
Investigators said from a helmet left at the scene of the crime to one of the suspects.
Just , the prosecutor’s office revealed the two men had partially admitted to taking part in the robbery.
They were charged with organised gang theft and criminal conspiracy.
A further five suspects were arrested on October 29, however only one of them is thought to be a part of the four man team that raided the Louvre.
A 37-year-old man was charged before a magistrate with theft and criminal conspiracy and a 38-year-old woman has been charged with organised theft and criminal conspiracy with a view to committing a crime.
Both suspects appeared before a magistrate on October 31 and have denied any involvement.
Three people were also released by police.
The prosecutor’s office reported on November 25 that four further suspects from Paris had been detained by cops.
Police say they are open to all options in the search to recover the jewels
The four person team carried out the theft in just four minutes
The extendable ladder (C) used by three thieves to access one of the upper floors of the museum is seen during the investigation at the southeast corner of the Louvre Museum
A 39-year-old man has since been charged before a magistrate on November 27, with organised gang theft and criminal conspiracy.
Police believe he is the final member of the four-person team.
The other three detained were later released on November 27.
French police have so far charged five suspects, however, the jewels are yet to be located, with none of the special pieces recovered.
Earlier this week, top Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau said: “The interrogations have not produced any new investigative elements”.
It has been three months since the broad-daylight heist, however the case remains a top priority.
Four people broke into the Louvre and stole priceless jewels last week
The criminals stole eight pieces of historic jewellery belonging to Napoleon and Joséphine
The Crown of Empress Eugénie was found broken into pieces below the window
Beccuau added: “Our main objective is still to recover the jewellery.”
On the morning of October 19, the thieves parked a mover’s truck with an extendable ladder just below the Louvre’s Apollo Gallery, where the French crowned jewels were displayed.
Two of the thieves climbed up the ladder, broke into the museum through a window, using angle grinders to cut open the glass display booths.
The other other waited below, according to investigators.
Beccuau said petty criminals carried out the heist, not a crew of organised professionals.
It was revealed by the Louvre’s director after the theft that the only camera monitoring the gallery had been pointing away from the balcony the thieves had broken in through.
Was Louvre heist an inside job?
By Sayan Bose
IT may have taken more than pure genius and a stroke of sheer luck to carry out a heist that is now at the centre of the world’s attention
Investigators believe the brazen Louvre heist, which saw a group of thugs steal historic crown jewels worth £76million, was an inside job.
Raiders with chainsaws scaled the side of the world’s most visited gallery before opening a window to enter and steal the precious jewels – all in just seven minutes.
Paris police have now said they found digital forensic evidence that a member from the museum’s security team was in touch with the thugs.
A source told The Telegraph : “We have found digital forensic evidence that shows there was cooperation with one of the museum’s security guards and the thieves.
“Sensitive information was passed on about the museum’s security, which is how they were aware of the breach.”
The thieves wheeled a furniture lift to the museum and rode the basket up the facade to break the gilded Galerie d’Apollon, where the jewels were kept in cases.
One in high-vis and one in motorbike gear, they climb off and jump on escape scooters
Two of the thieves could be seen heading back down the mechanical ladder
Investigators found a power saw at the scene
A motorcycle helmet and a gas cylinder found by investigators on the scene
After the high-profile smash and grab, the four thieves fled on high-powered motor scooters, dropping a diamond and emerald crown in their haste.
Eight of the other stolen items – including an emerald and diamond necklace that Napoleon I had gifted his second wife, Empress Marie-Louise – remain lost.
According to Beccuau, investigators were keeping an open mind as to where the loot might be.
“We don’t have any signals indicating that the jewellery is likely to have crossed the border,” she said.
“Anything is possible.”
She also said anyone who came forward with the jewels or knowledge of their whereabouts would be considered with “active repentance, which could be taken into consideration” during a trial.
A fifth suspect, a 38-year-old woman who is the partner of one of the men, has also been charged with being an accomplice.
She was however later released under judicial supervision, pending a trial.
Investigators still don’t know if the theft was ordered.
“It’s a hypothesis under consideration, but it cannot be asserted as more certain than any other,” Beccuau said.
“We refuse to have any preconceived notions about what might have led the individuals concerned to commit this theft.”
She added that detectives and investigating magistrates were resolute.
“We haven’t said our last word. It will take as long as it takes.”
Laurence des Cars, the president of the Louvre, has admitted the museum failed in its responsibilities.
She did however, deny that security had been overlooked, saying that from the time she had taken office in 2021, she had constantly warned of the need for further investment.
Since the theft, security measures have been significantly increase around France’s cultural institutions.
The Louvre has also transferred some of its most precious items to the Bank of France in the aftermath of the heist.
Four people broke into the Louvre and stole priceless jewels
The thieves made off with priceless treasures
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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