Elmira Aliieva is an NBC News intern based in London.
The hunt was on Monday for the thieves still on the run after the first suspects in the Louvre heist were arrested by French police. The breakthrough came a week since the robbers broke into the Galerie d’Apollon, threatening guards and drilling into display cases before escaping on scooters with eight of France’s crown jewels worth an estimated $102 million.
A major police operation has been underway to track down the thieves, who were captured on camera fleeing the scene. While many details were not officially confirmed, the AFP news agency reported that two men were taken into custody on suspicion of organized theft and criminal conspiracy. One man was arrested in Paris' Charles de Gaulle Airport, as he was “preparing to leave the country,' Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau said in a statement. Police said that DNA samples discovered at the crime scene helped identify the suspects. 'Thanks to the work of the forensic police, we were able to find DNA and find these individuals who were recorded in our national police databases,' Axel Ronde, spokesperson for the French police union CFTC, told French television channel CNews. He added that the suspects have prior convictions and were known to police for organized theft, having previously targeted jewelry stores. While police can hold suspects for up to 48 hours without charge, in organized crime investigations like this one, the suspects' detention can be extended to 96 hours. Beccuau said investigators were continuing their search for the stolen jewels and the remaining suspects, but that it was 'too early' to provide the public with any more detail. 'I will release additional information at the end of this period of police custody,” she said, adding that she did not want to hinder the investigation.
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