The Paris prosecutor’s office says four more people have been arrested as part of its investigation into the theft of precious jewels from the Louvre museum last month.
Two men, aged 38 and 39, and two women, aged 31 and 40, were arrested on Tuesday. They are all from the Paris area.
According to French media, four of them are believed to be the last members of the gang that allegedly carried out the robbery in broad daylight. Authorities say the other three suspected thieves have already been arrested and charged.
The police now have up to 96 hours to interrogate him. There has still been no trace of the stolen jewels – worth €88m (£76m; $102m) – which were taken on 19 October.
Four people have already been charged with robbery – three men and a woman, who also live in the Paris area.
Earlier this month a 38-year-old woman was charged with organized theft and criminal conspiracy with a view to committing a crime.
Separately, a man aged 37 was charged with theft and criminal conspiracy.
Both suspects, who have not been publicly named, have denied any involvement.
Ms Becu previously told French news agency FranceInfo that the two were in a relationship and had children, without giving any further details.
Meanwhile, two men were charged with theft and criminal conspiracy in October after authorities said they “partially acknowledged” their involvement in the robbery.
The robbery took place when a group of four people used a mechanical lift mounted on a stolen vehicle to access the Galerie d’Apollon (Apollo’s Gallery) via a balcony overlooking the Seine River, Becu said earlier.
The men used disc cutters to break open display cases of jewellery.
The thieves remained inside for four minutes and fled on two scooters waiting outside at 09:38, before making off in cars.
One of the stolen items – a crown – was dropped during the escape, but eight other items of jewelery – including an emerald and diamond necklace that Napoleon I had given to his second wife, Empress Marie-Louise – were taken.
Bekuu stated that the robbery was carried out by petty criminals rather than organized crime professionals.
Shortly after the theft, the director of the Louvre revealed that the only camera monitoring the Galerie d’Apollon was pointing away from the balcony the thieves had climbed to get inside.
The Louvre’s president, Laurence des Cars, has since admitted that the museum has failed in its responsibilities, but has denied that security has been neglected – saying she had been consistently warning about the need for greater investment since taking over in 2021.
Security measures have been tightened around French cultural institutions since the incident.
The Louvre transferred some of its most precious gems to the Bank of France after the robbery.
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