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Ritz Paris theft: some jewels found but gang members still on run Ritz Paris robbery: jewels recovered but two gang members still on run
(about 13 hours later)
French police have recovered some of the jewels worth an estimated €4m (£3.5m) that were looted from the Ritz hotel in central Paris on Wednesday evening, a police source has told AFP, as officers hunt for two thieves who remain on the run. Paris authorities have recovered all the jewels stolen from the Ritz hotel in a dramatic robbery on Wednesday, but were still searching for two thieves who got away, officials said on Thursday.
A gang of five masked men armed with axes and knives smashed the display windows of jewellery shops on the ground floor of the hotel on rue Cambon, near the Place Vendôme, at about 6.30pm (5.30pm GMT). The gems, taken by a gang of at least five men, were worth an estimated €4.5m (£4m).
“A part of the loot was recovered scattered about during the arrest of three of the suspected robbers,” the police source said, referring to the men detained immediately after the heist. Workers cleaned up shattered glass on Thursday and started to repair damage from the robbery. Otherwise business appeared to be returning to normal at the Ritz, with no significant increase in security.
More jewels and watches were found in a bag dropped by one of the two suspects still at large, added the source, who could not give an estimate for the value of the goods retrieved. Three men entered the hotel by the service entrance, “smashed the jewellery stands and grabbed jewels that were clearly expensive with the help of axes,” said Jean-Michel Huguet of Alliance Police Nationale, a police union.
Place Vendôme, home to some of Paris’s top jewellers and high-end watchmakers, has been the scene of several audacious daytime raids in recent years. They seized watches from display cases and then targeted an Alexandre Reza jewellery boutique inside the hotel.
Three of the robbers, who were wearing gloves and balaclavas and carrying handguns as well as hatchets, entered the hotel from the back and smashed the display windows, according to two police sources. They tried to escape out of the back but found the doors blocked and tried to transfer the loot through a window to two accomplices waiting outside. The three threw bags of jewels out of a window to at least two accomplices outside, police said. The three inside were then blocked by police officers when they tried to flee through another door, and quickly arrested, the official said.
One of the two accomplices fled by car. The other made his getaway on a motorbike, dropping a bag of jewels in the process. The total value of the loot was estimated at €4m, a legal source close to the case told AFP. The two accomplices who had been outside the hotel then fled – one on a motorcycle and another in a car.
Gérard Collomb, the French interior minister, praised the police response following the arrests. “Armed robbery at the Ritz: three of the presumed thieves already arrested by police from the 2nd arrondissement. Their sang froid, their professionalism and their quick reactions do the police proud. I am grateful to them,” Collomb tweeted. The motorcyclist dropped a bag containing jewels and hatchets when his motorcycle hit a pedestrian during his escape. The pedestrian was slightly injured.
Other jewels were found scattered amid the debris of the shattered display cases during overnight cleanup efforts.
An official close to the investigation said Thursday night that all the stolen jewels have been recovered, after authorities and jewellers carefully examined the contents of the bag and debris and found everything had been accounted for.
Another police official said some of the thieves apparently had guns. Two people inside the hotel hid from the thieves and alerted police, the official said.
Gérard Collomb, the French interior minister, praised the police response following the arrests. “Armed robbery at the Ritz: three of the presumed thieves already arrested by police from the 2nd arrondissement. Their sangfroid, their professionalism and their quick reactions do the police proud. I am grateful to them,” Collomb tweeted.
The Ritz is owned by the Egyptian businessman Mohamed Al Fayed. It was at the Paris Ritz that Diana, Princess of Wales, dined with Fayed’s son, Dodi, the night before they died in a car crash in August 1997.The Ritz is owned by the Egyptian businessman Mohamed Al Fayed. It was at the Paris Ritz that Diana, Princess of Wales, dined with Fayed’s son, Dodi, the night before they died in a car crash in August 1997.
Security was stepped up in and around Place Vendôme in 2014 after a series of thefts on luxury shops and jewellers in the square, which is also home to France’s Ministry of Justice.Security was stepped up in and around Place Vendôme in 2014 after a series of thefts on luxury shops and jewellers in the square, which is also home to France’s Ministry of Justice.
In October 2016, jewellery worth €10m was stolen from the American reality TV star Kim Kardashian in Paris. Five men, some wearing jackets with police insignia, held her at gunpoint, making off with several pieces of gold and diamond jewellery.In October 2016, jewellery worth €10m was stolen from the American reality TV star Kim Kardashian in Paris. Five men, some wearing jackets with police insignia, held her at gunpoint, making off with several pieces of gold and diamond jewellery.
Wednesday’s robbery comes 18 months after the Ritz reopened to guests after nearly four years of renovations and a major fire.Wednesday’s robbery comes 18 months after the Ritz reopened to guests after nearly four years of renovations and a major fire.
Agence France-Presse contributed to this report Agence France-Presse and Associated Press contributed to this report