Louvre Museum Heist Exposes Security Lapses

The Louvre Museum's director, Laurence des Cars, has admitted that the museum failed to spot a gang of thieves who stole €88m worth of French crown jewels on Sunday. Des Cars told French senators that the CCTV around the Louvre's perimeter was 'weak' and 'aging', and that the only camera monitoring the exterior wall where the thieves broke in was pointing away from the first-floor balcony. The museum's security was criticized, with des Cars acknowledging that the CCTV system was 'very unsatisfactory' and that some areas were too old to adapt to modern technologies. The museum has been plagued by budget challenges and cuts in surveillance and security staff over the past decade. Des Cars has tendered her resignation but it was refused by the culture ministry.

Thieves stole priceless jewels, including a sapphire tiara and necklace, from the Louvre Museum in Paris, valued at $102 million. However, according to master jeweler Stephen Portier, the thieves will struggle to sell the stolen items on the black market due to their high profile and unique characteristics. The jewels' value will drop significantly if they are dismantled and sold as individual stones. Portier hopes that the police will recover the stolen pieces undamaged.

A 24-year-old Chinese woman has been arrested and charged with the theft of gold worth $1.7 million from the Natural History Museum in Paris. The theft occurred on September 16, and the suspect was arrested in Barcelona on September 30. The stolen gold included nuggets from Bolivia, Russia, and California, as well as a five-kilogram nugget from Australia. The investigation is ongoing, and the suspect is being held in provisional detention. The theft is one of several recent high-profile break-ins targeting French cultural institutions, including a jewelry heist at the Louvre museum on Sunday.

The Louvre Museum's director, Laurence des Cars, revealed to a French Senate committee that no security cameras covered the second-floor balcony where thieves entered the museum, stealing historic jewels worth over $100 million. The heist occurred during opening hours via a truck-mounted ladder, raising concerns about the vulnerability of the country's museums to new tactics. Des Cars attributed the weakness to 'chronic underinvestment in equipment and infrastructure' and offered her resignation, which was rejected. The investigation is ongoing, with experts warning that the stolen jewels may be dismantled for their raw materials.

Thieves stole jewelry worth over $100 million from the Louvre Museum in Paris using a truck-mounted lift to access a second-floor window. The heist occurred on a Sunday morning and lasted less than four minutes. The stolen items include a sapphire diadem, necklace, and earrings linked to 19th-century queens and empresses. Investigators believe the robbers may have been commissioned by a collector or were motivated by the value of the jewels and precious metals.

Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy has received death threats in prison, less than a day after beginning a five-year sentence for criminal conspiracy. A video circulating online shows an inmate threatening Sarkozy, who is serving time for conspiring to raise campaign funds from Libya. The Paris prosecutor's office has launched an investigation, questioning three inmates and seizing two mobile phones. Sarkozy's lawyers have filed a request for early release, pending his appeals trial, and hope to get him freed by Christmas. The former president has consistently denied wrongdoing and called the case politically motivated. Sarkozy will be assigned two permanent police officers as bodyguards to ensure his safety in prison.

The Louvre Museum in Paris reopened on Wednesday after a major theft on Sunday, in which thieves stole jewels worth an estimated £76m. The museum's director, Laurence des Cars, admitted that the heist was a 'terrible failure' and offered to resign. The thieves used a crane to access an upstairs window, smashed the glass, and made off with eight pieces from France's Crown Jewels. The Louvre's security shortcomings were criticized, with des Cars stating that there were not enough cameras outside monitoring the vicinity of the museum. The culture minister refused to accept des Cars' resignation, and authorities are investigating the theft with roughly 100 investigators.