Art recovery expert: 'If they could get into the Louvre, they can get in anywhere'

Nearly nine months after the world’s most visited museum experienced an incident reminiscent of a “James Bond” film, the Louvre Museum’s Apollo Gallery reopened.

But what was once filled with exhibits holding precious jewels of historical significance to France is now vacant.

In October, masked thieves, disguised as construction workers, used a basket lift to reach the gallery windows, then an angle grinder to break through, and reportedly a disc cutter to get the jewels in their casings — all in just seven minutes. The suspects then fled on motorcycles, taking more than $100 million worth of historic French jewelry.

The Louvre’s President Christophe Leribault told the press on Wednesday that the Apollo Gallery will revert to its previous function as a state gallery.

“This iconic Louvre location will no longer be used to display royal jewelry or gems,” he said, adding that the gems will now be moved to a more secure location in the museum.

Culture Minister Catherine Pegard also stressed that the country’s national collections are not exempt from criminal and malicious activity. “Security is not an obstacle but a condition. I will soon present a national plan to strengthen the safety of our museums and our national collections,” she added in a post on X.

The jewels taken in October remain missing, despite law enforcement arresting the four criminals believed to have carried out the heist.

Those arrested have reportedly said they were hired to steal the jewels, but will not admit by whom, art recovery expert Christopher Marinello told France 24. “Unfortunately, law enforcement is underfunded, understaffed, and not prepared to recover our cultural heritage when it’s stolen in this fashion,” he said.

Marinello said that on Wednesday morning he was reached out to by someone who said they had information on where the stolen jewels were, but won’t speak on it unless there is financial compensation.

“We get countless reports, crazy ideas and things that just don’t pan out. But you never know. And we have recovered millions worth of artworks thanks to tipsters like this who come forward,” Marinello explained.

But, he continued, “If they could get into the Louvre, they can get in anywhere. The message here is that our museums and our cultural institutions are not safe, and governments have difficulty now allocating money to the arts because they’re tied up with post-COVID situations, immigration crises, there’s two wars going on in the world right now of major importance and there just isn’t money for security for our museums and for law enforcement.”