PARIS, Oct 25 — The Louvre has transferred some of its most precious jewels to the Bank of France, according to French radio RTL, after an audacious daylight heist last week exposed the famed museum’s security vulnerability.
The transfer of some valuable items from the museum’s Apollo Gallery, home to the French crown jewels, was carried out yesterday under secret police escort, RTL said, citing unnamed sources.
The Bank of France, which stores the country’s gold reserves in a massive vault 27 metres (88 feet) below ground, is located just 500 metres away from the Louvre, on the Right Bank of the River Seine.
The Louvre and the Bank of France did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
The thieves stole eight precious pieces worth an estimated US$102 million from the Louvre’s collection on October 19, exposing security lapses as they broke into the world’s most-visited museum using a crane to smash an upstairs window during opening hours.
They escaped on motorbikes.
News of the robbery reverberated around the world, prompting soul-searching in France over what some viewed as a national humiliation. — Reuters
