Two suspects have been arrested a week after the daring theft of jewelry from the Louvre in Paris, prosecutors confirmed today, DPA reported, quoted by BTA.
One of the suspects was detained at Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport, and the second was arrested in the Paris region, Paris prosecutor Laure Bequo told DPA.
The arrests were made yesterday evening. Both are being held in custody on charges of gang-related theft, the prosecutor's office said. Two other alleged accomplices are still at large.
According to BFMTV, the two men are in their 30s and are already known to the police. France Info reported that DNA traces found at the crime scene had led investigators directly to the suspects.
"Pari Match" magazine reported that one of the men arrested at the airport had apparently planned to fly to Algeria.
Prosecutor Laure Bequo criticized the premature disclosure of information by third parties, saying it had hindered the investigation.
The Louvre was closed a week ago after four masked thieves broke into the "Gallery of Apollo", where the rest of France's royal jewels are kept.
They smashed two display cases and stole eight pieces of jewelry that once belonged to French queens and empresses, worth an estimated 88 million euros. Since the arrests, there has been no official information about the whereabouts of the jewelry.