The two prime suspects in the infamous 2025 Louvre jewel heist claimed they were recruited by a “mysterious sponsor,” according to statements made to Paris judicial authorities that were published by Le Monde over the weekend.
Arrested one week after the robbery and indicted on charges of “organized gang robbery,” Abdoulaye N., 40, and Ghelamallah A., 36, remained silent for months in pre-trial detention. In June, however, they appeared before investigating judges and, for the first time, offered an expanded account of the theft of the French Crown Jewels from the museum’s Apollo Gallery. According to the men, they were hired two or three days before the crime by a sponsor whom they do not name. That sponsor is reportedly still sought by police.
The alleged mastermind reportedly sent the pair a video filmed inside the Apollo Gallery, showing the royal jewels on display, along with concise instructions: break the gallery’s windows and retrieve the jewelry from the display cases. Abdoulaye N., a former motocross social media star who, by his own admission, was in desperate need of money, said he was promised between 15,000 and 20,000 euros to break into the Louvre—“maybe more,” depending on the outcome.
