Six Individuals Detained After €12M Robbery on Precious Metals Facility in the French Republic

Six armed perpetrators using high-powered firearms used explosive devices to breach the security of a precious metals processing plant located in Lyon, resulting in minor injuries to five staff members during what is being called the most recent prominent daylight theft to hit the nation.

The audacious robbery was carried out on the afternoon of Thursday, with police forces rapidly detaining the alleged criminals and retrieving the loot assessed at around €12 million (£10.5M), as stated by authorities.

Five workers of the precious metals facility received light wounds from the blast, and three individuals were transported to hospital for evaluation, the regional prefecture announced. Twenty-eight employees were inside the facility when the perpetrators raided.

Those arrested, believed to be career criminals, were taken into custody soon afterwards in the nearby town of Vénissieux, a source close to the investigation stated.

A woman involved who took part in the robbery was also apprehended, according to law enforcement.

“Six individuals who employed explosive devices in an attack on a precious metals company in the Lyon area were apprehended red-handed,” the nation's interior minister announced via X, lauding police for their “decisiveness, speed and control”.

High-caliber firearms, handguns and detonation devices were likewise seized.

The robbery occurred as authorities on the same day arrested five more suspects, featuring a main perpetrator, in connection with the recent audacious theft at the Louvre.

Dozens of investigators have been hunting four thieves who used a vehicle equipped with a moving lift and cutting gear to breach a first-floor gallery at the renowned museum on 19 October, fleeing with ornaments assessed at around 88 million euros.

In a different significant robbery, burglars recently forced their way into the Natural History Museum in Paris, making off with gold samples estimated at exceeding $1M. A woman from China, aged 24 was arrested earlier this month in Barcelona, Spain in connection with the break-in, officials confirmed.

This series of robberies has raised concerns in the country regarding insufficient protection at cultural venues and other facilities housing valuable items.