On Sunday, October 19th, 2025, four men dressed as construction workers stole eight pieces of priceless jewelry from the Louvre Museum in Paris. They completed this whole Hollywood style heist in no more than seven minutes.
The plan began to unfold at 9:30 AM, under broad daylight, when a truck with an electrical ladder arrived outside of a Louvre window leading to the Apollo Gallery. Dressed as construction workers, four thieves scaled the ladder to reach the window.
The men then used an angle grinder to cut through the window and get inside. They went on to break two display cases and steal eight pieces of jewelry, all dating back to the 19th century and valued together at $102 million.
When the display cases were broken, an alarm began to sound, alerting guests and staff of the break in. The thieves quickly descended the ladder, and in their haste dropped the crown of Empress Eugenie (pictured above). They sped off on scooters before authorities arrived.
Authorities found many pieces of evidence at the crime scene, including the now damaged crown and the angle grinder. They also found a yellow vest a few blocks away, presumably one of the culprit’s disguises.
People fear that since the jewels cannot be sold in their current state, the thieves will melt and break them down and sell them that way, making them much more difficult to trace.
In just seven minutes, priceless and irreplaceable pieces of history were erased and may never be seen again.
