Blink-and-miss Louvre heist: Seven minutes, at least 3 thieves and nine jewels gone | What we know so far
The thieves reportedly used a goods lift to reach the Apollo Gallery, where part of France’s crown jewels are kept.
It seemed like a scene straight out of a heist movie. In broad daylight, and in just seven minutes, at least three masked thieves struck Paris’s Louvre Museum on Sunday, October 19, 2025, making off with nine priceless pieces from the French crown jewels collection.
Traffic was blocked around the Louvre Pyramid, and gates on the Seine side were closed, leaving tourists stranded. “What's going on?” one visitor asked. “Watch the news,” a policewoman replied, according to a Le Parisien report.
How did the robbery unfold?
Around 9:30 a.m., as visitors began to fill the museum, three masked thieves gained access through a construction site along the Seine quayside.
They reportedly used a goods lift to reach the Apollo Gallery, where part of France’s crown jewels are kept. “Individuals entered from outside with a cherry picker,” Interior Minister Laurent Nunez confirmed.
The thieves allegedly carried small chainsaws and cut through a window with an angle grinder to enter the gallery. “Clearly a team that had been scouting,”a former Paris police chief told Le Parisien.
Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said “three or four thieves” were involved.
Once inside, they swiftly grabbed nine items of jewelry, including a tiara and a brooch from Napoleon Bonaparte’s collection and pieces belonging to Empress Eugenie.
Also Read | Entry through basket lift, heist in 7 minutes: How thieves stole jewellery from Louvre museum
Clean getaway, disappeared into streets
The criminals made a clean getaway on motor scooters, disappearing into the streets of Paris.
One of the stolen jewels, believed to be Empress Eugénie’s broken crown, was later found discarded outside the museum. Culture Minister Rachida Dati described the loot as “quite priceless” and said the operation was carried out in “four minutes” by “professionals.
The Louvre was immediately evacuated, and the museum remained closed as forensic teams combed the scene. Traffic was blocked around the Louvre Pyramid, and gates on the Seine side were closed, leaving tourists stranded.
7 minutes, 9 items: Heist at the Louvre
Officials confirmed that the thieves focused on two displays in the Apollo Gallery, taking nine pieces from the jewelry collection of Napoleon and Empress Eugenie.
Of these, two items, including the Empress’s crown, have already been recovered, while others, including a necklace, earrings, a brooch, and another crown, remain missing.
The Paris prosecutor’s office has opened an investigation into organized theft and criminal conspiracy, led by the Banditism Repression Brigade of the Judicial Police (BRB) and supported by the Central Office for Combating Trafficking in Cultural Property (OCBC).
What is the Louvre?
The Louvre itself is colossal, covering 73,000 square metres of exhibition space.
Built in 1546 as a royal palace for King Francis I, it became a public museum after the French Revolution. Today, it houses over 35,000 artworks and welcomes around 30,000 visitors every day.
Political voices on the 7-minute theft
Culture Minister Rachida Dati confirmed that the loot was "quite priceless" and described the operation as carried out in “four minutes” by “professionals.”
Communist senator for Paris, Ian Brossat, addressed his “first thoughts to the staff,” adding, “We must hope that the police and justice services quickly identify the perpetrators so that they can be convicted and the stolen items recovered.”
