QuantumQuail
Well-known member
Heist at France's Louvre Museum Leaves Trail of Broken Glass and Empty Displays - A brazen four-minute theft has left eight priceless jewels missing from the world's most-visited museum. Thieves wielding power tools struck at 9:30 am, breaching security while the museum was open to the public. The masterminds made off with eight items in a swift operation that took just over four minutes.
According to authorities, the thieves entered the Galerie d’Apollon through a window and targeted the French crown jewels before making their escape on motorbikes. A ninth item, the crown belonging to Empress Eugenie, was recovered nearby after it was dropped by the thieves during the getaway.
While the stolen items have significant monetary value, "these items have priceless heritage and historical value," said Culture Minister Rachida Dati. No injuries were reported in the incident, but authorities confirmed they are reviewing CCTV footage and collecting evidence to track down the perpetrators.
The Louvre Museum, home to Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa, will remain closed for the day due to "exceptional reasons." The museum has seen its share of high-profile thefts over the years. In 1911, the Mona Lisa was famously stolen by a former employee, only to be recovered in Florence two years later.
This is not the first time French museums have been targeted. Last month, thieves broke into Paris's Natural History Museum and stole gold samples worth $700,000. In November, four thieves made off with precious artifacts from another Paris museum in broad daylight, using axes and baseball bats to break into a display case.
According to authorities, the thieves entered the Galerie d’Apollon through a window and targeted the French crown jewels before making their escape on motorbikes. A ninth item, the crown belonging to Empress Eugenie, was recovered nearby after it was dropped by the thieves during the getaway.
While the stolen items have significant monetary value, "these items have priceless heritage and historical value," said Culture Minister Rachida Dati. No injuries were reported in the incident, but authorities confirmed they are reviewing CCTV footage and collecting evidence to track down the perpetrators.
The Louvre Museum, home to Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa, will remain closed for the day due to "exceptional reasons." The museum has seen its share of high-profile thefts over the years. In 1911, the Mona Lisa was famously stolen by a former employee, only to be recovered in Florence two years later.
This is not the first time French museums have been targeted. Last month, thieves broke into Paris's Natural History Museum and stole gold samples worth $700,000. In November, four thieves made off with precious artifacts from another Paris museum in broad daylight, using axes and baseball bats to break into a display case.
just heard about the heist at the Louvre Museum!! 
I'm SHOOK that they got away with 8 priceless jewels in like 4 minutes?! 
The security fail is wild lol. I mean, how do you breach a museum during public hours and no one notices? 
They must've had some serious inside help or something.
That painting is iconic. On the bright side, at least they recovered one of the stolen items, so it's not all bad 
. But for real though, museums need to up their security game ASAP! 
Can't have our cultural heritage getting swooped up like that. 
The Mona Lisa is like, iconic! I'm actually kinda worried about what these thieves will do with all that stuff. Will they sell it on the black market or try to pass it off as their own masterpieces? 
And, honestly, I feel bad for the museum staff and security - I mean, who wouldn't want to protect this kind of art? 
This is just too much drama! Can't wait to see how it all plays out! 
they had all that time to react and still thieves got away with 8 priceless jewels and a crown what's next the entire collection? 
And now the Mona Lisa's neighbors are probably feeling pretty bare 
. But seriously, gotta feel for the museum staff and security team who were caught off guard 
, hopefully they can recover some of those stolen items and catch these thieves soon 
i mean yeah the monetary value is crazy but come on these are priceless cultural treasures not just some old rocks or whatever...the fact that they could break into a museum with power tools while people were there watching is just crazy 
and another thing what's going on in paris right now? it feels like museums everywhere are getting hit left and right 
what's worrying me is that these thieves seemed super organized and efficient - like they had inside help 
and the fact that the crown was dropped during the getaway means there must've been some pretty sharp instincts or planning involved 
but honestly the most valuable thing lost is probably the history behind those pieces you can never get that back 
. And on a normal day too, not even during a special event or anything. The CCTV footage better be sharp so we can catch these guys in the act 
. Also, what's up with the French museums being targeted all the time? Are they just like, magnets for thieves or something 
? I'm not surprised it happened during the day when there are people around, security should be tighter than this 
. I'm not saying the museum should stay closed for a week or anything, but some security measures need to be taken seriously 
️
i'm so curious to see what they'll find out from that CCTV footage... 