France arrests 4 more suspects in high-value Louvre jewel theft

陈小将

PARIS -- Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau on Tuesday announced the arrests of four additional individuals in connection with the theft at the Louvre Museum.

The suspects, two men aged 38 and 39 and two women aged 31 and 40, all from the Paris region, were taken into custody. The prosecutor's office said the charges against them would not be specified until the end of their police custody.

This latest round of arrests follows an initial wave of detentions and indictments in late October and early November.

The theft occurred on the morning of Oct. 19 in the Apollo Gallery of the Louvre Museum, where four individuals stole eight jewels valued at approximately 88 million euros (102 million U.S. dollars). Initial findings indicate the perpetrators used a freight elevator to access an upstairs window, broke open display cases, and fled with the items.

Police and judicial authorities continue working to reconstruct the full chain of responsibility while pursuing multiple leads on the whereabouts of the stolen jewels.

On the same day, local media Le Parisien reported that the investigation had gained new momentum with the arrest of an additional individual described as the "fourth member" of the main group involved in the robbery. The suspect has been placed in custody, though no trace of the stolen jewelry has yet been found, the report said.