A team of four thieves executed a meticulously planned heist at the Louvre Museum on Sunday morning, making off with historic jewelry pieces in a raid that lasted just seven minutes. According to Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau, the perpetrators used powerful scooters for their getaway after threatening security guards with angle grinders used to breach display cases containing the valuable artifacts.

The operation involved precise coordination, with two thieves arriving in a nacelle (platform lift) - one driving and one as passenger - while two others preceded and followed the lift as it positioned itself beneath a balcony providing direct access to the gallery. All four men had their faces concealed and wore distinctive clothing, including one in a yellow vest and another in an orange vest according to Le Parisien reports.

French authorities described the group as an "experienced team" that demonstrated remarkable efficiency in targeting the world's most visited museum. Despite functioning alarm systems that alerted the central security post, the thieves managed to steal eight jewelry items before museum guards intervened, forcing the perpetrators to flee and abandon some equipment at the scene.

The incident has prompted sharp criticism of security protocols, with Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin acknowledging "we have failed" in preventing the theft facilitated by unsecured windows and unauthorized equipment left on public streets. While the investigation continues using surveillance footage from both the museum and city cameras, authorities currently favor the theory of organized crime involvement rather than foreign interference in what prosecutor Beccuau characterized as "grand banditisme."