Louvre director acknowledges failure after jewel heist; says she offered to resign

The Louvre’s director on Wednesday acknowledged a “terrible failure” at the Paris tourist attraction after a daylight crown jewel heist over the weekend, and said that she offered to resign but it was refused.

Louvre director Laurence des Cars says she offered to resign

The world's most-visited museum reopened earlier in the day to long lines beneath its landmark glass pyramid for the first time since one of the highest-profile museum thefts of the century stunned the world with its audacity and scale.

In testimony to the French Senate, Louvre director Laurence des Cars said that the museum had a shortage of security cameras outside the monument and other ″weaknesses″ exposed by Sunday’s theft.

Under heavy pressure over a heist that stained France’s global image, she testified to a Senate committee that she submitted her resignation, but that the culture minister refused to accept it.

“Today we are experiencing a terrible failure at the Louvre, which I take my share of responsibility in,” she said.

The thieves slipped in and out, making off with eight pieces from France’s Crown Jewels — a cultural wound that some compared to the burning of Notre Dame Cathedral in 2019.

Late detection

The theft — steps away from the Mona Lisa and valued at more than $100 million — has put embattled President Emmanuel Macron, Culture Minister Rachida Dati, des Cars and others under new scrutiny. It comes just months after employees went on strike, warning of chronic understaffing and not enough resources for protection, with too few eyes on too many rooms. “We did not detect the arrival of the thieves soon enough,” des Cars said.

She said that the museum’s alarms had worked properly, but that it currently doesn't have full video surveillance of the perimeter outside the museum, though there is a plan to provide full coverage of all the Louvre's facades.

She also suggested barriers to prevent vehicles from parking directly alongside the museum’s buildings, and said that she would push for a police station inside the museum, which welcomes 30,000 visitors a day and 2,300 workers.

France acknowledges failings

Authorities say the thieves spent less than four minutes inside the Louvre on Sunday morning: a freight lift was wheeled to the Seine-facing facade, a window was forced open and two vitrines were smashed.

Then came the getaway on motorbikes through central Paris. Alarms had gone off, drawing agents to the gallery and forcing the intruders to bolt.

As it reopened, the Louvre declined questions from a news agency to detail any reinforced protocols. It said that no uniformed police were posted in the corridors. With school holidays swelling demand, the day was fully booked and access limited. “I didn’t notice extra security — guards as always, and no police inside. It felt like a normal day,” said Tomás Álvarez, 29, a software engineer from Madrid.

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