In a stunning daylight heist, thieves stole priceless French crown jewels from the Louvre Museum in Paris, with CCTV footage revealing they completed the robbery in just seven minutes.
Key Takeaways
- Thieves stole eight valuable crown jewels from the Louvre Museum
- CCTV shows robbers disguised as construction workers cutting through glass displays
- The heist was completed in just seven minutes during museum hours
- Among stolen items is a diamond corsage bow worth €6.72 million
Daring Daylight Robbery Caught on Camera
Security footage circulating on social media shows three robbers entering the Louvre Museum through a construction zone using a crane. The video captures them cutting through glass display cases containing the French crown jewels and fleeing within seven minutes. Authorities report the thieves escaped on a motorcycle.
Perfect Disguise: Construction Worker Costumes
In a shocking detail, the thieves wore construction worker outfits, allowing them to operate in plain sight as visitors passed by unaware. The disguise was so effective that museum visitors had no clue about the robbery unfolding around them. Police are still working to identify the suspects, with no arrests reported yet.
Priceless Royal Jewels Stolen
France’s Ministry of Culture confirmed eight valuable pieces were stolen, including:
- A sapphire tiara, necklace and earrings once belonging to Dutch Queen Hortense de Beauharnais and French Queen Marie-Amelie
- An emerald necklace and matching earrings from Napoleon’s second wife, Marie-Louise
- A reliquary brooch and another tiara
- Empress Eugenie’s large diamond corsage bow set with 2,634 diamonds
The diamond corsage bow was particularly valuable, purchased by the Louvre in 2008 for €6.72 million after being privately held in the United States. During their escape, the thieves attempted to take Empress Eugenie’s crown but damaged and dropped it.
Investigators have not yet estimated the total value of the stolen artifacts as the search for the missing royal jewels continues.
