On October 19th, at around 9:30, just thirty minutes after the museum opened, two masked figures climbed up to the second floor through a portable electric ladder, and broke the window using grinders, in the Louvre. This floor holds many prized collections, including royal jewels and crown diamonds. Once inside, they smashed open two cases, sounding even more alarms. After that, they took eight precious artifacts, including a royal emerald necklace and its matching earrings, and a crown worn by Empress Eugénie, the wife of Napoleon III, France’s 19th-century ruler. They then climbed back down to two motor scooters and two accomplices waiting for them. All of this happened in less than 8 minutes.

Together, the crowned jewels were valued at $102 million. After the heist many politicians, including the mayor of central Paris, Ariel Weil, mourned the loss of some of the country’s prized possessions.

“It seems like a scenario out of a film or a television series,” Mr. Weil says. Many politicians debate on how this could happen at 9:30 on an Sunday morning, in broad daylight.

President Emmanuel Macron, after the incident, posted on social media, vowing that, ¨We will recover the works, and the perpetrators will be brought to justice. Everything is being done, everywhere, to achieve this.”

Currently, authorities are investigating security camera footage, as well as the items the thieves did not take.

During the break-in, the museum was already full of visitors. At the moment, the room contained five staff members that were either inside of near the Galerie d’Apollon. Although no citizens were hurt from the thieves, staff report being threatened by them. While leaving, the thieves seem to have accidentally dropped a crown that was originally made for Empress Eugénie.

While the thieves were getting away, they tried to burn the baskets of the monte-meubles, which was the electric ladder that was truck mounted, that had originally brought them to the second floor of the Louvre.

This was not the first time the Louvre had experienced this. However, the best-known, was in 1911, when the Mona Lisa was stolen by museum employee, Vincenzo Peruggia. It took two years to finally catch the culprit, while trying to sell the portrait in Italy. This was the heist that made the Mona Lisa catch widespread attention from all around the world.

As of now, the four culprits have already been caught and arrested. Two of them were caught while trying to board a flight out of the country, while the other one was charged later. Records show, that two out of those three men have lengthy criminal records. On the other hand, none of them are professional theives.