IT may have taken more than pure genius and a stroke of sheer luck to carry out a heist that is now at the centre of the world’s attention
Investigators believe the brazen Louvre heist, which saw a group of thugs steal historic crown jewels, was an inside job.
Raiders with chainsaws scaled the side of the world’s most visited gallery before opening a window to enter and steal £76milllion worth of precious jewels – all in just seven minutes.
Paris police have now said they found digital forensic evidence that a member from the museum’s security team was in touch with the thugs.
A source told The Telegraph: “We have found digital forensic evidence that shows there was cooperation with one of the museum’s security guards and the thieves.
“Sensitive information was passed on about the museum’s security, which is how they were aware of the breach.”
The thieves wheeled a furniture lift to the museum and rode the basket up the facade to break the gilded Galerie d’Apollon, where the jewels were kept in cases.
Over the course of just seven minutes, the thieves grabbed nine glittering pieces from the Napoleon and Empress Joséphine collection – but dropped one as they tore off.
They then spirited away on motorbikes through central Paris.
Astonishing new footage emerged showing the burglars escaping down the cherry picker with their stolen loot.
Security guards can be heard swearing in panic and disbelief as they watch the prized jewels disappear.
A former thief who was linked to multiple heists involving jewellery worth more than £14,000 told the New York Times it was no fluke that the buglers knew where to target and how.
Larry Lawton said: “Let me tell you, they had an inside person.
“An inside person doesn’t mean they even know him. Could it be a girlfriend who’s a tour guide, and she knows, oh, where it is?”
The thugs managed to get away with priceless pieces, including a tiara, necklaces and brooches that once belonged to Napoleon Bonaparte’s family.
Laurence des Cars, the director of the museum, admitted there was a security failure and the museum “failed” to protect the irreplaceable jewels from “brutal” criminals.
“Despite our efforts, despite our hard work on a daily basis, we failed,” she said.
Des Cars revealed that security cameras did not adequately cover the thieves’ point of entry.
She said the security perimeter cameras are ageing and do not cover all the external walls of the Louvre.
The only camera over the Apollo Gallery was facing westwards and didn’t cover the balcony where the break-in took place.
The director said: “We did not spot the arrival of the thieves early enough… the weakness of our perimeter protection is known.”
Parisian cops are now desperately trying to hunt down the eight pieces of invaluable jewels nicked in the broad daylight heist.
The eight crown jewels stolen in the smash-and-grab raid:
- Tiara from the set of Queen Marie-Amelie and Queen Hortense
- Necklace from the sapphire set of Queen Marie-Amelie and Queen Hortense
- Earring, from the pair belonging to the sapphire set of Queen Marie-Amelie and Queen Hortense
- Emerald necklace from the Empress Marie Louise set
- Pair of emerald earrings from the Empress Marie Louise set
- Brooch known as the “reliquary brooch”
- Tiara of Empress Eugenie
- Large corsage bow brooch of Empress Eugenie
- Another item – the crown of Napoleon III’s wife, Empress Eugenie – was reportedly recovered from outside the window but broken
It comes amid serious fears that the jewels had been stolen so they could be sold off around the globe to the rich and wealthy via the black market, where they will likely never be seen again.
Robbers often prefer items that can be broken up, melted or made smaller which can also be converted into cash – such as the jewels.
This is because things like crowns and diamonds can easily be broken apart and sold into several bits.
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The final price might drop significantly compared to the entire historical jewel but it does allow for a safer and easier transaction if it goes to market.
If the Louvre’s famous artefacts are already in a safe house, then it is possible that they have already been cut up, melted down or even sold in full.
Stealing the attention
A GERMAN company raised eyebrows after launching a tongue-in-cheek ad campaign for their cherry picker which was used in the Louvre heist.
Furniture lift manufacturer Böcker posted a picture of the truck and wrote a shocking slogan in German that translates to “When things need to go quickly”.
Photos of a freight lift went viral as authorities began investigating the lightning-fast daylight heist.
Alexander Böcker, the managing director and third-generation owner of Böcker Maschinenwerke GmbH, said he and his wife were shocked to see that their company’s product had been misused for the brazen robbery.
But they seized the moment to launch an unexpected endorsement campaign for their truck.
The company joked that the machine pictured leading up to the Louvre’s first-floor balcony was capable of lifting “up to 400kg of treasures at 42m per minute – as quiet as a whisper”.
Mr Böcker said: “We had hoped for a bit of attention and some good humour, but the feedback was overwhelming,
“I can understand that not everyone shares this sense of humour, but the vast majority laughed heartily.”
Though he added that the freight lift is not permitted to transport humans.
“Crown jewels, yes. Thieves, no,” the owner of the German company said.