Two men arrested in Louvre heist to be charged; jewels not found

Two men who were arrested over jewels stolen in a brazen heist at the Louvre museum this month will be charged for theft by an organised gang, Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau said at a press conference in Paris.

Prosecutors will ask that the men be jailed while the investigation continues, she said, adding that the royal necklaces, tiaras, and earrings that were stolen haven’t been found yet. The pair are will also be charged with criminal conspiracy. Both offenses come with lengthy prison terms, she said. 

Beccuau described the stages of the theft, and some of the techniques used to find the two men who were arrested, including getting DNA samples from a scooter used in the getaway for one and from a broken window and objects dropped as they fled the scene for another. 

She declined, however to go into detail on avenues police are exploring to find other members of the group that carried out the theft or to get back the jewels themselves.

“The investigation remains confidential with regard to the individuals still being sought,” she said at the press conference on Wednesday. “The jewellery is not yet in our possession. I want to remain hopeful that it will be found and returned to the Louvre Museum and, more broadly, to the nation.”

Politicians, French police and Louvre’s security staff have been criticised for not stopping the heist. The lax outdoors surveillance, that allowed a furniture hoist to park up outside the museum unnoticed, could have made it a more attractive target than the closely-guarded jewellery stores at the Place Vendôme.

What happens to the jewels taken has also been a much-discussed topic, given, as Beccuau noted on Wednesday that they are “unsellable.”