Six people armed with military-grade weapons used explosives to break into a gold refining laboratory in Lyon on Thursday, October 30th.
The audacious raid on Laboratoires Pourquery slightly injured five employees, three of whom were taken to hospital for checks.
Police quickly apprehended the suspected perpetrators in the neighbouring town of Venissieux. Among those arrested was a female accomplice. Assault rifles, handguns, and explosives were seized, and the loot recovered is estimated at €12 million ($13.8 million), officials said.
Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez praised the officers on X for their “firmness, speed and control.”
In another case, Paris prosecutors reported that five more suspects have been arrested over the brazen Louvre museum jewellery robbery. Among them is the alleged ‘mastermind’, whose DNA was linked to the October 19th heist.
The thieves used a truck lift and cutting tools to steal eight pieces of priceless jewelry, including items once owned by the wives of Napoleon III and Napoleon Bonaparte.
None of the stolen jewelry has yet been recovered. Two suspects previously detained were charged with criminal conspiracy after partially admitting to their roles in the high-profile burglary.
