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In the video, one of the men exits the stage, adjusts a bag hanging over his shoulder and walks casually towards two parked motorcycles.
The clip shows two men dressed all in black making a surprisingly slow escape.
A 36-second video has emerged online offering a stunning glimpse into one of the most audacious art thefts in decades – the theft of the €88m (£76m) crown jewel from the Louvre Museum in Paris. The clip has been verified by ParisianIt shows two men dressed all in black – one wearing a high-visibility yellow jacket, the other wearing a motorcycle helmet – making a surprise escape after looting the museum’s famous Apollo Gallery, home to French royal treasures.
The short but startling video was filmed from a nearby window, and shows the couple slowly being lowered on a furniture hoist from a gallery window — the same window that police say was smashed earlier that morning. One of the men exits the stage, adjusts his bag slung over his shoulder and walks casually towards two bicycles parked along Quay François Mitterrand.
A voice, believed to be from a museum security guard’s radio, can be heard saying: “They will leave.”
Seconds later, another voice adds: “Damn, here we are, the police.”
Moments after the men disappear from the picture, sirens can be faintly heard in the distance.
🇫🇷🚨BREAKING: Footage of the robbery that targeted the Louvre Museum in Paris has now been published. This is the first time we can see an actual video of “Theft of the Century.”
Here, the thieves escape on a truck-mounted lift before escaping on a motorcycle. pic.twitter.com/LsCrAFeziW
– RMX News & Views (@RMXnews) October 22, 2025
Investigators said two members of a four-man gang carried out the robbery by using disc cutters to cut through two glass display cases, stealing eight historical pieces in less than seven minutes. Among the missing jewels is an emerald and diamond necklace given by Napoleon I to Empress Marie Louise and a diadem owned by Empress Eugenie, wife of Napoleon III, both priceless artifacts of France’s imperial history.
A stolen utility truck equipped with a 30-meter extendable ladder and basket lift was found abandoned near the scene, indicating careful planning and professional execution.
French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said more than 100 investigators had been assigned to the case, describing it as a matter of “national importance.”
Louvre Museum director Laurence de Carre described the incident as a “fiasco,” admitting that the museum’s external camera coverage was largely inadequate, allowing thieves to exploit a security blind spot.
24 October 2025, 5:06 PM IST
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