Louvre heist: Mastermind 'wasn't happy'; thought the thieves 'could have taken more'

The alleged mastermind of the €88m (£75m) Louvre museum in Paris last October was disappointed by the move and thought they “could have taken more”, two men suspected of the heist told investigators.

The thieves, known locally as Abdoulaye N and Ghelamallah A, claimed to have broken into the Louvre’s Apollo gallery at the behest of a client, French newspaper Le Monde reported, citing transcripts of the interrogations. They refused to name the client out of fear for their families.

Thieves made off with eight pieces of jewellery, including tiaras, brooches, necklaces and earrings, during the break-in, which made global headlines and led to the resignation of the museum’s director.

However, when they fled, they allegedly dropped the jeweled crown worn in the 19th century by Empress Eugénie, wife of Napoleon III.

“Yes, it was me, it fell out of my bag,” admitted Abdoulaye N when the judges showed him a photo of the badly damaged crown: “What we did was not right, it’s very serious.”

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Mastermind “wasn’t happy”

Abdoulaye N told judges they gave the loot to the alleged mastermind who was “not happy” with the result – “He thought we could have taken more”.

The thieves said they were hired just two or three days before the break-in and were shown a video shot in the gallery showing cases containing Napoleonic jewels to prepare them for the heist.

Abdoulaye N said they were given a clear task – “To break the windows and get the jewelery from the display cases.

He said he was “in dire straits” financially. The former minor social media star with a passion for motorbikes promised between €15,000 and €20,000 for his role in the burglary: “Maybe more, depending on how much money it would bring.”

According to him, the mastermind’s motivation was financial and he planned to resell the stolen jewels.

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One knew, one didn’t

Abdoulaye N told investigators he “knew I was going to rob the Louvre,” but Ghelamallah A said the target was initially presented to him as “a jewelry store where they make jewelry in Paris” and not the most visited museum in the world.

“I would never have set foot there if I had known,” Ghelamallah, who was promised a fee of between €20,000 and €25,000.

The Louvre in the Louvre Museum: A race against time

The pair allegedly smashed through the window of the Apollo Gallery after taking the furniture lift to the first floor balcony. They then entered the museum and began carving the windows of two display cases.

“When we got inside, no one was there, it was dark, only the lights were on in the display cases,” said Abdoulaye N. “In the distance, I saw security moving around, behind the door or something.”

He said he was aware he was racing against time.

“We had to take as much jewelry as we could,” he said. “If it takes us more than three minutes, we know we have to leave or we’ll be reported. To me, what we did took too long.”

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What happened to the looted jewels?

The thieves said they did not know what happened to the jewels after the robbery, according to the French newspaper. However, they refused to provide investigators with clues about the identity of the mastermind or possible accomplices for fear of retaliation.

“They are not gang fighters,” said Ghelamallah A. Abdoulaye N was equally cautious: “I was not threatened, but I received calls from outside (in custody). They told me to keep quiet.”

However, investigators have not confirmed that the robbers acted on behalf of anyone, Le Monde reported.