Paris police find major security gaps at Louvre after theft

Paris police said Wednesday that they found major security gaps at the Louvre Museum after the jewel theft last week.

Paris Police Chief Patrice Faure told Senate lawmakers that old systems and delayed fixes resulted in holes in security, The Associated Press reported.

“A technological step has not been taken,” Faure said, noting parts of the museum's video network are still analog, which have lower-quality images that are slow to share in real time.

Also, a $93 million project requiring about 37 miles of new cabling “will not be finished before 2029–2030,” he said.

Faure added that the Louvre’s authorization to operate its security cameras quietly expired in July and wasn’t renewed due to a paperwork lapse.

“Officers arrived extremely fast,” he said, but noted the lag occurred earlier in the chain, from first detection of the break-in and theft, to museum security, to the emergency line, to police command.

Faure and his police team said that the first alert was from a cyclist outside who dialed the emergency line after seeing helmeted men with a basket lift, not from the Louvre’s alarms.

He rejected suggestions that there be a permanent police post inside the Louvre, as it would set an unworkable precedent and do little against fast, mobile crews.

“I am firmly opposed,” Faure said. “The issue is not a guard at a door; it is speeding the chain of alert.”

He urged Senate lawmakers to authorize tools such as AI-based anomaly detection and object tracking to flag suspicious movements across city cameras in real time.

Two suspects were arrested over the weekend, according to officials, and prosecutors have until late Wednesday to charge or release them, or get an extension from a judge.

The thieves stole eight pieces valued at about $102 million, none of which have been confirmed recovered. The jewels are also insured by the state, rather than privately, because of the high premiums for the priceless, historical jewels. This means that the Louvre will receive no payout for the loss.

Culture Minister Rachida Dati has refused the Louvre director’s resignation, insisting alarms worked while acknowledging “security gaps did exist.”