Organized gang perfected $103M Louvre heist with multiple vehicles, precise timing

French media on Monday revealed details of what investigators describe as a highly organized operation behind the October jewelry heist at the Louvre Museum, with stolen items now estimated to be worth around €88 million ($103 million).

According to the French news broadcaster BFMTV, the burglary on Oct. 19 was carried out by a coordinated group using multiple vehicles, precise timing, and planned escape routes.

Surveillance footage reviewed by investigators shows two suspects, identified as XH1 and XH2, forcing entry into the Apollo Gallery at 9.34 am (0834GMT) using a grinder before swiftly collecting historic jewels and leaving the site within four minutes.

The haul included eight pieces adorned with 8,482 diamonds, 35 emeralds, 34 sapphires and 212 pearls, BFMTV reported, citing investigation data.

Investigators say the operation began hours earlier in Aubervilliers, north of Paris, where scooters and utility vehicles were seen departing in stages toward the capital.

A cherry picker truck, later abandoned near the museum, was used to access the gallery window. The suspects fled on scooters after the theft, while a white utility vehicle believed to have transported the jewels has not been recovered.

DNA evidence and extensive CCTV analysis led police to identify four suspects.

Abdoulaye N., 39, identified as XH1, was arrested on Oct. 25 in Aubervilliers and later admitted to entering the gallery, according to the report.

Ayed G., identified as XH2, was detained the same day at Charles de Gaulle Airport as he attempted to leave France for Algeria.

DNA linked a third suspect, Slimane K., to the cherry picker, while a fourth man, Rachid H., was arrested in western France in late November.

All four have been formally charged and placed in pretrial detention. They are presumed innocent.

The stolen jewels remain missing, and investigators have not determined whether they were dismantled, sold, or kept intact.