Louvre heist

Louvre thief: The mastermind behind it was disappointed with the loot

The mastermind behind the spectacular heist at the Louvre in Paris last year was “disappointed” that the thieves did not manage to snatch more. This is what two men suspected of having participated in the heist told French investigators, writes Le Monde.

The thieves managed to get hold of crown jewels worth 88 million euros, equivalent to approximately 970 million kronor. According to the suspected thieves, the mastermind thought they “could have taken more”.

In the interrogations, both men stated that they were contacted just days before the heist and were offered between 15,000 and 25,000 euros for the raid.

One of the men says that he did not know that it was the Louvre they were going to hit, but thought it was a “jewelry shop where they make jewels in Paris”.

– I would never have set foot there if I had known, he says in questioning.

Eight objects are still missing after the coup. The only thing that has been found is a crown that the thieves dropped on the ground in connection with the raid.

The Louvre heist — that's the point

• On October 19, 2025, four thieves carried out a spectacular theft of priceless crown jewels from the Louvre in Paris.
• The loot consisted of eight pieces of jewelry worth almost a billion kronor, of which Empress Eugénie's crown was dropped and found damaged outside the museum.
• The police arrested a total of nine people, two of whom admitted their involvement and their DNA was found on the getaway vehicle.
• Investigations revealed extensive security deficiencies at the Louvre, including few surveillance cameras and a lack of internal communication.
• The museum's director, Laurence des Cars, resigned in February 2026 after harsh criticism of security, and Christophe Leribault was appointed as the new director.