What Will Happen to the Jewelry Stolen From the Louvre?

By Rob Bates | October 21, 2025

There are two theories about the fate of the eight historic jewels stolen in a brazen daytime heist at Paris’ Louvre museum on Sunday.

The first is that the crooks will wait for a bit, then break the pieces apart, melt down the gold, and sell the diamonds and emeralds, which will likely be recut to avoid detection.

The second is that the four thieves nabbed the items with a specific buyer—possibly a jewelry expert or collector—in mind.

Peter Montalbano, president of Montalbano Adjustment Services, who has consulted on numerous theft investigations, tells JCK he’s leaning toward the second theory.

“I don’t know why the thieves would steal from such a high-profile target when there are hundreds of jewelry stores,” he says. “Gold is gold—you don’t need to take it from the Louvre. That just seems like an incredible amount of work. The real value is in the pieces. The thought that they would just be broken down, I find that hard to believe.”

If no specific buyer is involved, the items will likely be fobbed off on a “low-level fence who will just give them 15 cents on the dollars and couldn’t care less they are historic pieces,” Montalbano says.

France’s interior minister Laurent Nuñez has said that over 60 investigators are working on the case, according to NBC News.

Given that the robbers apparently dropped certain objects as they escaped on scooters—including clothes, tools, and a tiara they’d taken out of its case in the museum—there’s a high probability they will be caught quickly, according to Montalbano.

“With the evidence that’s been left behind, if the police do their job properly, these guys will soon be in custody,” he says. “If [the thieves] have done anything before, their DNA will be put in the system and the police will know who they are. With all the cameras all around, there has to be video of these guys fleeing.

“This smells of an experienced group who may have had some inside knowledge, yet there are things that strike me as amateurish,” Montalbano adds. “Dropping a piece outside—that’s flat-out sloppy. The theft took seven minutes, which seems quick but it’s actually a long time [for a robbery like this].”

He expects that the police will examine museum visitor logs and check security video of the Apollo gallery, which housed the stolen pieces.

“They’ll want to see if there’s anyone who’s been paying extra attention to the construction of the cases or the location of the cameras,” says Montalbano.

While some have criticized the Louvre for lax security, Montalbano says safeguarding a museum is costly and has unique challenges.

“A museum is supposed to be inviting to the public,” he says. “You can have cameras and alarms, but where there’s a will, there’s a way.”

Top: The crown of Empress Eugénie, which was taken from its Louvre display case in Sunday’s heist but recovered after thieves dropped it (photo: © RMN-Grand Palais (Musée du Louvre)/S. Maréchalle)