Thieves Steal Crown Jewels In 4 Minutes From Louvre Museum

PARIS (AP) — During a one-minute strike at the world’s most visited museum on Sunday, thieves rode a basket elevator into the museum. LouvreAs tourists stood shoulder to shoulder in the corridors, people forced a window into the Galerie d’Apollon, smashed the display cases and made off with priceless Napoleonic jewels, authorities said.

It was among the most high-profile museum thefts in recent memory and came at a time when Louvre employees were complaining about shortages of labor and security staff.

An object was later found outside the museum, according to Culture Minister Rachida Dati. French newspaper Le Parisien reported that what was found broken just beyond the walls was from III. Napoleon’s wife, Empress Eugénie, reportedly had an emerald-studded crown (gold, diamonds, and eagle statues).

The theft took place just 250 meters (270 yards) from the scene. Mona Lisa, In what Dati described as a “four-minute operation”. No one was injured.

Footage from the scene showed confused tourists being directed out of the glass pyramid and adjacent courtyards as police officers blocked nearby streets along the Seine river.

Also visible was an elevator attached to the façade overlooking the Seine near a construction site; This was an extraordinary vulnerability for a palace-museum.

Around 9:30 a.m., several intruders forced a window, cut glass with a disc cutter and headed straight for storefronts, authorities said. Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said the crew entered from the outside using a basket lift.

The choice of target added to the shock. The vaulted Galerie d’Apollon in the Denon wing, XIV. It is covered with a ceiling painted for Louis XIV and displays a selection of French Crown Jewels. According to Le Parisien, the thieves are believed to have approached from the riverside façade where construction was ongoing, used a freight elevator to reach the hall, grabbed nine pieces from a 23-piece collection linked to Napoleon and the Empress, and fled on motorbikes.

Daytime robberies during public hours are rare. Taking a photo inside the Louvre, where visitors were present, has been among the most daring acts in Europe ever since. Dresden’s Green Vault museum in 2019 and the most serious incident in France in more than a decade.

This also clashes with a deeper tension the Louvre is trying to resolve: growing crowds and stretched staff. The museum postponed its opening for a while Staff strike in June due to overcrowding and chronic understaffing. Unions say mass tourism leaves too few eyes in too many rooms and creates pressure points in construction zones, shipping lanes and where visitor flows meet.

Security around the framework works remains tight; The Mona Lisa is housed behind bulletproof glass inside a specially designed, climate-controlled case.

It’s unclear whether staffing levels played any role in Sunday’s breach.

The Louvre has a long history of theft and attempted robbery. The most famous of these occurred in 1911, when the Mona Lisa disappeared from its frame and was stolen by Vincenzo Peruggia, and was found in Florence two years later.

Today, a civilization survey is being conducted in the former royal palace: Leonardo’s Mona Lisa; Venus de Milo’s armless serenity; The Winged Victory of Samothrace, blown by the wind on the staircase of Daru; engraved codes of the Code of Hammurabi; Delacroix’s Liberty Guiding the People; Raft of Medusa by Géricault. More than 33,000 works, from Mesopotamia, Egypt and the classical world to masters of Europe, attract up to 30,000 visitors a day, even as researchers now begin to comb the gilded corridors for clues.

The robbery immediately spilled over into politics. Far-right leader Jordan Bardella used it to attack President Emmanuel Macron, who is weakened at home and faces a fractured parliament.

“The Louvre is a global symbol of our culture,” Bardella wrote to X. “This robbery, which enabled thieves to steal the jewels of the French crown, is an intolerable humiliation for our country. How far will the decay of the state go?”

Criticisms are pouring in as Macron touts a ten-year “Louvre New Renaissance” plan worth around €700 million to modernize infrastructure, ease crowds and give the Mona Lisa a dedicated gallery by 2031. For workers on the ground, relief came slower than the crackdown.

Forensic teams conducted a full inventory while examining the crime scene and adjacent access points, authorities said. Officials said the shipment had “invaluable” historical value.

Recovery can be difficult. “It is unlikely that these jewels will ever be seen again,” said Tobias Kormind, managing director of 77 Diamonds. “Professional teams often smash and recut large, recognizable stones to avoid detection, effectively erasing their origins.”

The Louvre remained closed for the rest of Sunday as police sealed the doors, cleared courtyards and closed nearby streets along the River Seine.

Officials said there are still important unanswered questions about how many people participated in the theft and whether they had inside help. According to French media, there were four perpetrators: two dressed as construction workers, two in the elevator wearing yellow safety vests, and two each riding scooters.

Investigators reviewed security cameras in the Denon wing and along the riverfront, inspected the basket lift used to reach the gallery and interviewed staff who were in the area when the museum opened, officials said.

Associated Press writer Jill Lawless in London contributed to this report.