The thieves who brazenly robbed the Louvre in Paris and stole priceless jewelry in one of the most daring museum heists in recent history may have been hired by a private collector, officials say.
While authorities are still trying to identify the burglars, prosecutors said Monday that a bottle of liquid and other materials were left at the scene and are now under investigation. All leads in the investigation remain open, the office added.
Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau told local media that investigators believe the robbers, who carried out the raid in just seven minutes in broad daylight on Sunday, may have been commissioned by a collector or motivated purely by the value of the jewelry and precious metals, Reuters reported.
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“We are looking at the organized crime hypothesis,” Beccuau told BFM TV, noting that the thieves could be professionals operating on spec for a buyer.
Beccuau added that if a collector were to pull off the heist, there is hope that the stolen pieces will remain intact and well-preserved until they are recovered, the outlet reported. If the thieves were acting independently, they might have targeted the jewels for their potential use in laundering criminal proceeds.
“Nowadays, everything can be linked to drug trafficking, given the significant amounts of money made from drug trafficking,” Beccuau said, according to Reuters.
Investigators are keeping all leads open, but foreign interference has reportedly been largely ruled out in the case.
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“How did they know how thick the glass was, or if it had an alarm?” Lawton asked.
Lawton added that if he were the thieves, he would not immediately sell the items to avoid detection.
“I could stash them somewhere where no one knows, wait a year or two,” Lawton said, adding that companies would eventually give out a reward “no questions asked.”
“They’ll pay a million dollars for this… obviously they want their jewelry back,” he said.
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The Louvre, the most visited museum in the world, announced it would remain closed on Monday after Sunday’s daring theft.
Masked thieves disguised as construction workers struck in front of visitors and staff on Sunday morning, a period described as one of the museum’s most chaotic, authorities said. Officials said thieves pulled a basket lift up to a window and smashed it open with an angle grinder. They reportedly used a disc cutter to cut through the windows protecting the jewelry.
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A total of nine objects were targeted, eight of which were stolen, officials said. The thieves failed to take the ninth item, the crown of Napoleon III’s wife, Empress Eugenie, during their escape.
The crown alone is worth tens of millions of euros, although experts say this is not the most important piece.
Authorities have not yet identified the robbers, who escaped on motorcycles.
