Thieves steal €600,000 in gold from Paris Natural History Museum

Professional thieves broke into Paris’s Natural History Museum on Tuesday morning, making off with rare native gold specimens worth approximately €600,000 ($700,000) in a sophisticated heist that exploited security vulnerabilities created by a July cyberattack. The theft highlights a disturbing pattern of high-profile museum robberies that has plagued France in recent months, raising concerns about the security of the nation’s cultural institutions.

Precision Strike on Scientific Treasures

The break-in at the National Natural History Museum in Paris’s 5th arrondissement was discovered Tuesday morning after thieves used industrial tools including an angle grinder and blowtorch to force entry into the riverside complex, according to reports from AFP. The perpetrators targeted several specimens of native gold—a natural alloy containing gold and silver in its unrefined form—from the museum’s geology and mineralogy gallery.arabnews

“We are dealing with an extremely professional team, perfectly aware of where they needed to go, and with professional equipment,” museum director Emmanuel Skoulios told BFM TV. “It is absolutely not by chance that they went for these specific items.”arabnews

The stolen specimens, while valued at €600,000 based on raw gold prices, carry “immeasurable heritage value” according to the museum’s statement. Among the museum’s prized holdings is a native gold and quartz specimen measuring nine by 8.5 centimeters from the Donatia mine in California, though officials have not confirmed if this particular piece was among those stolen.punchng

Cyberattack Creates Security Vulnerability

An unnamed police source told Le Parisien newspaper that the museum’s alarm and surveillance systems had been disabled by a cyberattack in July, with investigators believing the thieves were aware of this vulnerability. The museum had been severely impacted by what officials described as a “massive” ransomware attack since late July that rendered parts of its network and critical research tools inaccessible.arabnews

The cyberattack disrupted research activities and forced the cancellation of exhibitions, including the “Tropical Autumn” exhibition scheduled for October. The institution refused to pay any ransom, aligning with French public administration policies.sortiraparis

Part of Broader Crime Wave

This heist represents the latest in what the museum called “a critical time for cultural institutions,” with several public collections targeted by theft in recent months. Earlier in September, thieves struck the Adrien Dubouché National Museum in Limoges, stealing two Chinese porcelain dishes from the 14th and 15th centuries and an 18th-century vase classified as national treasures, with losses estimated at €6.5 million.arabnews

In November 2024, four men armed with axes and baseball bats conducted a brazen daylight robbery at Paris’s Cognacq-Jay Museum, smashing display cases and stealing seven 18th-century snuffboxes worth approximately €1 million. The following day, armed robbers targeted the Hiéron Museum in Saône-et-Loire, stealing jewelry worth several million euros.artnet

The string of sophisticated thefts has prompted speculation from officials that collectors may be commissioning these crimes. “It is likely that collectors are giving orders to steal these items and are turning to high-level criminals,” suggested Emile Roger Lombertie, mayor of Limoges, following the September porcelain theft.nbcrightnow