Two Louvre heist suspects ‘partially admit’ involvement, prosecutor says

Two men arrested in connection with the Louvre burglary two weeks ago have “partially admitted” to their brazen involvement in the robbery, according to authorities.

The detained couple is suspected of using electrical equipment to break into the museum’s Apollo gallery and steal some of the French crown jewels.

Items worth 88 million euros (£76 million; $102 million) were stolen from the world’s most visited museum on October 19, when four thieves using power tools broke into the building in broad daylight.

Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau said the jewels had not yet been found and the gang involved may have been larger than the four men caught on CCTV.

The two men, both in their thirties, had criminal records and were identified by DNA left at the scene, Beccuau said.

One of the men was arrested while trying to board a one-way flight to Algeria, but Beccuau said the other man was not planning to leave France, despite earlier media reports.

He added that there is currently no evidence to suggest that the theft was an inside job, confirming that there were no accomplices working at the museum.

But Beccuau said he did not rule out the possibility that the incident involved more than the four suspects captured on CCTV.

“I want to stay hopeful [the jewels] “They will be found and they can be brought back to the Louvre and to the nation more broadly,” he said.

On Sunday, when the arrests were made, prosecutor criticizes “premature release” of information about the caseHe added that this hampered efforts to recover the jewels and find the thieves.

The thieves arrived at 09:30 (08:30 GMT), just after the museum opened to the public.

The suspects arrived with a vehicle-mounted mechanical elevator to gain access to the Galerie d’Apollon (Apollon Gallery) from a balcony near the River Seine.

Footage taken from the scene shows a staircase leading to the first floor window.

French police said that the thieves stayed inside for 4 minutes and escaped with two scooters waiting outside at 09.38.

Security measures around France’s cultural institutions have since been tightened.

Following the robbery, the Louvre transferred some of its most valuable jewels to the Bank of France. These will now be stored in the Bank’s most secure vault, 26 m (85 ft) below the ground floor of its elegant headquarters in central Paris.