A correspondent for Agence France-Presse mentioned that the accused appeared before the judge in tears, and pointed out that she resides in the suburb of La Courneuve, north of Paris. The Public Prosecutor in Paris has requested that she be placed in pre-trial detention pending the completion of the investigations.
The French authorities had previously announced the arrest of two people in connection with the case, before the Public Prosecution confirmed on Thursday the arrest of five other people, including the main suspect. On Friday, one of the five detainees was released without charge, according to his lawyers.
The Public Prosecutor in Paris, Laure Beccuau, explained that among those arrested is a person suspected of being a member of the group that carried out the theft in less than eight minutes on October 19, and added that there is DNA evidence that directly links him to the scene of the incident.
Beccuau also confirmed that the estimated value of the stolen jewelry is approximately 88 million euros, and affirmed her determination, in cooperation with a team of one hundred investigators, to recover the stolen items and expose all those involved in this operation.
However, the Public Prosecutor admitted that the stolen treasure is still missing, and indicated that investigators are searching parallel markets where the stolen items are believed to have arrived, given the difficulty of selling them in official markets.
These developments come amid widespread controversy about the security system in the Louvre Museum, which is considered one of the most popular museums in the world, with demands to strengthen security measures inside and around the museum.
