Arrested man believed to be fourth member of Louvre heist team, Paris prosecutor says

A man arrested by French police earlier this week He is believed to be the fourth member of the team to stole the crown jewels of France in a brazen heist at the Louvre Museum, the Paris prosecutor said Friday.

Prosecutor Laure Beccuau, whose office is leading the investigation, said the 39-year-old has a criminal record and six previous convictions.

He has now been charged with preliminary charges of robbery by an organized gang, punishable by 15 years in prison, and criminal conspiracy, which can carry a 10-year sentence if convicted for his alleged role in the stunning October 19 robbery at the world’s most visited museum. The loot of the band of thieves was worth a estimated $102 million — a monetary value that did not include its enormous historical value to France.

The prosecutor’s statement did not say exactly what role the man is believed to have played in the daylight robberymade with angle grinders, a forklift and subterfuge, with thieves dressed as workers in shiny vests.

The theft is believed to have been the work of a four-person team: two people broke into the museum’s Apollo Gallery, where the jewelry was on display, and were then taken away on motorcycles by two associates waiting outside.

The jewelry has not been recovered. the thieves took loot that included a diamond and emerald necklace that Napoleon gave to Empress Marie Louise, jewels linked to the 19th century queens Marie Amélie and Hortensia, and the pearl and diamond tiara of Empress Eugenie.

It took the thieves less than eight minutes to force their way into the museum and leave, using a forklift to reach the building’s window. Footage from museum cameras showed the two who broke into the ornate Apollo Gallery used grinders to cut through jewelry display cases.

The emerald-set imperial crown of Napoleon III’s wife, Empress Eugenie, containing more than 1,300 diamonds, was later found outside the museum.