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One of the suspects in the jewelry heist at the Louvre museum last month has modest fame on social media and previously worked as a security guard at the famous Center Pompidou museum. This is what the French newspaper Le Parisien writes.
39-year-old Abdoulaye N. comes from Aubervilliers, north of Paris, and has been posting videos of street racing, motorcycle stunts and fitness on YouTube and TikTok, among others, since the late 2000s. He is said to be one of two men who carried out the jewelry heist in the Louvre and were arrested early last week. 34-year-old Algerian Ayed G. is the other suspect. Both have made partial confessions.
Since October 29, two more suspects have been detained: a 37-year-old man and a 38-year-old woman. The man was probably part of the group that carried out the robbery, the woman is his girlfriend. Both deny involvement in the robbery.
Three others arrested the same day have been released without charge. According to French justice, at least one person is still being sought.
No masterminds
The public prosecutor previously stated that the profile of the suspects does not match the image that emerged of them after the robbery in the prestigious Louvre: that of seasoned criminals. It appears that the suspects are not the masterminds behind the robbery, but that they acted on instructions. They also did not appear to have made much effort to prevent DNA material from being left behind.
N. was also known to the police for several thefts and robberies. As far as is known, he was not previously involved in organized crime.
According to Le Parisien, the investigation shows that N. tried to reintegrate into society after a previous period of detention and worked as an order picker and as a security guard at the Parisian museum Center Pompidou and the Albinet Museum in Aubervilliers.
Jewels still missing
The Louvre, where, among other things, the Mona Lisa hangs, was robbed on Sunday, October 19, shortly after opening by a group of thieves who, within a few minutes, forced open a window of the Apollo Gallery via a freight elevator they had brought with them and stole eight of the French crown jewels.
The jewelry, including a crown set with 1,356 diamonds and 56 emeralds, has a value of around 88 million euros. The jewels have still not been found and it is feared that the gemstones have been taken apart and recut to make them unrecognizable.
It was previously announced that the security of the Louvre was not in order. For example, video security is very outdated. The first report of the robbery did not come from the museum’s alarm system itself, but from a cyclist who called 911 when he saw men in a freight elevator outside the building.
