French Jewel Heist: ‘Heavily Armed And Battle-Hardened’ Robbers Escape With Millions
The hunt is on for a gang of armed robbers who ambushed two security vans on the A6 motorway in France, at around midnight on Tuesday March 10, The Guardian reports. The attack occurred at the Avallon toll booth, which lies approximately 105 miles to the south-east of Paris.
As the latest in a string of high profile jewel heists in France, CNN reports that the attack on Tuesday was perpetrated by up to 15 men, who fled the scene in four separate cars – taking with them jewels worth an estimated 9 million euros, or $9.5 million. The personnel inside the security vans were reportedly forced from their vehicles at the toll booth, and the gang drove the trucks away before abandoning them – apparently burnt out and empty – in a forested area near the toll booth.
A police source – speaking on condition of anonymity – described this French jewel heist gang as “heavily armed and battle-hardened.” This comment, in addition to the highly organised and well-executed raid, along with the fact that no injuries were caused, has led to speculation that authorities are now hunting a group of highly professional armed robbers.
France has seen the number of high profile jewel heists committed within its streets increase sharply in recent years. In 2013, two jewel heists were undertaken during the Cannes Film Festival. The first saw a gunman walk away from the iconic Carlton Hotel with £90 million worth of jewels from an event being held there. The second, saw two gunmen escape with an estimated $1 million from the Suite Novotel, located in the same area. That incident occurred during the premiere of the film The Bling Ring, and targeted an employee of the Swiss jeweller and watch maker, Chopard, who had apparently brought the wares to showcase throughout the international event.
As recently as November 2014, a Parisian Cartier jewellery store was robbed by two gunmen, who ultimately surrendered after taking a hostage and being pursued by police across the Seine River. The brazen nature of this most recent French jewel heist is not unprecedented, however. In 2008, four men disguised as women raided the Paris premises of Harry Winston jewellers. Armed with a hand grenade, they escaped with more than 80 million euros worth of items. The case took years to solve, with eight people having only recently been convicted of that crime. As a pre-cursor to the 2008 heist, Harvey Winston was targeted in 2007 by four men dressed as builders. They exited the shop through a rear door, taking almost 28 million euros worth of goods with them.
It is reported that law enforcement agencies have established a perimeter around the crime scene area, and are searching intensely for those that perpetrated this latest French jewel heist.
[Image: Antoine Antoniol/Getty Images]
