New details from the investigation of the spectacular robbery at the Louvre: How much the stolen jewels cost. The question to which the prosecutor cannot answer “yes or no”
Some of the jewels stolen by thieves from the Louvre Museum in Paris, PHOTO: Stephane DE Sakutin / AFP / Profimedia Images
The damage caused by the spectacular theft of jewels from the Louvre, committed on Sunday, was assessed by the curator of the museum at 88 million euros, an amount that only refers to the economic value of the stolen objects, the general prosecutor of Paris, Laure Beccuau, announced on Tuesday evening, according to AFP.
“The damage was estimated by the curator of the Louvre at 88 million euros”, an “extremely spectacular” amount, but which “has nothing in common or comparable to the historical damage”, the French prosecutor added to the RTL channel, stating that the criminals “will not earn” this amount “if they have the very bad idea of melting those jewels”.
“We can probably hope that they will think about it and not destroy these jewels for no reason,” added Laure Beccuau.
The magistrate said he was waiting “with interest to find out whether, according to police jargon”, the prints found “will match or not”. “The fingerprints are being analyzed,” she revealed, quoted by Agerpres.
The prosecutor also confirmed the number of “four people identified as being present at the scene”, opening up the possibility, however, that “around them” there was also “a whole series of teams” who “helped the thieves commit the theft”.
Asked about the existence of possible internal complicity within the most visited museum in the world, Beccuau said she could not answer “yes or no” at this stage of the investigation.
She also indicated that the aerial work platform used to commit the theft (a mobile ladder installed on a truck) was obtained by the criminals through a “pseudo-rent during an alleged move”.
“When one of the company's employees arrived at the relocation site, he was confronted by two men who threatened him but did not use any violence against him,” added Beccuau, referring to a complaint filed.
According to the prosecutor, in addition to the magistrates from the Specialized Interregional Jurisdiction (Jirs) of the Paris Prosecutor's Office, who lead the investigations, “around a hundred” investigators are mobilized in Paris in this case.
Located in central Paris, the Louvre Museum was robbed on Sunday and French authorities have since been searching for four criminals who stole eight “French Crown Jewels” during a spectacular heist that raised questions about the security of the world's most famous museum.
This theft, the images of which were broadcast around the world, sparked a political controversy and reignited the debate about the security of French museums.
A security guard at the Louvre said on Monday that “outdated” equipment and “drastic staff cuts” had left guards “reaching the limit” of what they could do to protect the famous museum in the French capital.
Elise Muller, who patrols the grounds of the former palace, said she was “furious” about the jewelery heist and that security lapses had long been reported.
“We raised the alarm through our union and our colleagues have repeatedly warned about the difficulties we face every day at work: the equipment is in poor condition, sometimes even completely obsolete, coupled with a drastic reduction in staff. We inevitably reached the limit of what we could do to ensure the security of the building and its collections,” Muller told Sky News.
