‘Priceless’ jewels stolen in raid on Louvre Museum in Paris

A manhunt is under way for a gang of thieves who carried out a broad daylight raid on Paris’s Louvre Museum and stole jewels described as priceless.

French Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said it took just minutes for the masked suspects to carry out the burglary on Sunday morning, shortly after the museum opened to visitors.

The gang appear to have used a mechanical ladder to reach a first-floor window, before breaking into display cases and escaping on mopeds.

The gallery targeted houses France’s royal jewels. Officials said nine items were taken. One – a crown belonging to Napoleon III’s wife – was seemingly dropped and found nearby.

The Louvre was evacuated and remained closed on Sunday.

The jewellery was stolen from the Galeria d’Apollon (Gallery of Apollo) at around 09:30 local time (08:30 GMT), the French interior ministry said.

The thieves used battery powered disc cutters to gain access to the building, Paris prosecutors told the BBC.

Four people were involved in the robbery, with two entering the building and threatening guards once inside, they added.

A vehicle-mounted extendable ladder was seen leading up to a window a stone’s throw from the River Seine, apparently left behind by the gang.

France’s culture ministry said the gang tried to set fire to the vehicle before they left but they were prevented by a member of museum staff.

No one was injured in the incident.

The nine items stolen from the gallery all date from France’s 19th century royalty and are encrusted with thousands of diamonds and other precious gemstones.

Among them was a brooch that once belonged to Empress Eugénie, wife of Napoleon III, and a pair of emerald earrings.

Empress Eugénie’s crown was found near the scene, apparently dropped by the thieves in their haste to get away.

The ornate crown features golden eagles and is covered in 1,354 diamonds and 56 emeralds, according to the Louvre’s website. Investigators are checking it for damage.

It is thought that criminals prefer to steal jewels because they can be broken down and sold for cash, whereas it is more difficult to make money from precious stolen artworks which are easily recognisable.

Beyond their commercial value, Nuñez said the stolen pieces have a cultural and historical value that could not be calculated, describing them as “priceless” and “of immeasurable heritage value”.

Police were seen turning tourists away from the museum, the world’s most visited, throughout Sunday as people continued to arrive oblivious to the closure and investigation.

American tourists Jim and Joan Carpenter said they were about to see Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa when security guards “swept us out of the gallery”.

The couple were ushered past the Galeria d’Apollon and out through an emergency exit, Mrs Carpenter told Reuters news agency.

Mr Carpenter said there was “lots of confusion” in the museum, and guards told the couple there were “technical difficulties” when they asked what was going on.

“I knew something was up because of the way they swept the whole museum,” Mrs Carpenter said.

Mr Carpenter added: “But it’s great. This is our last day of a long trip and it’s the most exciting part today.”