One of Five Suspects Released Without Charge in $102 Million Louvre Heist Case

Several suspects detained in connection with the daring jewel heist at Paris’s Louvre Museum appeared before magistrates on Saturday, November 1, as investigations into the multimillion-dollar theft continue.

According to AFP, one of the five suspects arrested earlier this week has been released without charge, his lawyers Sofia Bougrine and Noémie Gorin confirmed. The Paris prosecutor’s office did not disclose the total number of people presented before the court.

French authorities had initially reported the arrest of two suspects following the heist. Earlier this week, prosecutors announced that police had detained five more individuals, including a prime suspect, in and around the capital, particularly in the Seine-Saint-Denis suburb.

“In these serious crime cases, we find that waves of arrests look more like drift nets,” Bougrine told AFP, criticising what she described as the indiscriminate nature of some of the detentions.

The arrests follow a broad daylight robbery last month, when thieves armed with power tools broke into the Louvre and, in just seven minutes, stole jewels worth an estimated $102 million — one of the most audacious thefts in recent French history.

Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau said two men had been charged with theft and criminal conspiracy after “partially admitting to the charges.” Investigators believe they were the pair who entered the gallery, while two accomplices waited outside.

The stolen jewels remain missing as police continue their search.

With AFP inputs.