Thieves broke into the Louvre museum in Paris and stole priceless jewelry before escaping on motorbikes, French officials said Sunday.
Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez called the heist a “major robbery” that “lasted seven minutes.” Speaking to France Inter, he said the thieves “entered from the outside using a basket lift” and “a disc cutter” to slice through glass panes containing precious jewels.
“The investigation has begun, and a detailed list of the stolen items is being compiled,” the ministry said in a statement. “Beyond their market value, these items have inestimable heritage and historical value.”
The museum posted on X it would remain closed for the day for “exceptional reasons,” though it did not immediately provide details. No injuries were reported.
According to French daily Le Parisien, the thieves entered through a section of the museum under construction along the Seine River.
The crew reportedly used a freight elevator to access a room in the Apollo Gallery, which houses part of the French Crown Jewels.
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The crew stole “nine pieces from the jewelry collection of Napoleon and the Empress,” including a crown believed to have belonged to Empress Eugénie, the newspaper reported. The crown was later found broken outside the museum, the report said.
The Louvre houses over 33,000 works spanning antiquities, sculpture, and painting – from Mesopotamian artifacts and Egyptian relics to masterpieces by European artists. Its iconic treasures include the Mona Lisa, the Venus de Milo, and the Winged Victory of Samothrace.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
