Six Suspects Apprehended After 12 Million Euro Heist on Precious Metals Facility in France

Six armed perpetrators carrying high-powered firearms used explosive devices to breach the security of a gold refining laboratory located in Lyon, France, causing light wounds to five staff members during what appears to be the most recent prominent daytime heist to affect the country.

The daring raid occurred on the afternoon of Thursday, with police forces quickly arresting the individuals believed responsible and retrieving the loot assessed at around €12M (10.5 million pounds), according to officials.

Five employees of the gold refining company received light wounds due to the explosion, and three employees required hospital checks for examination, according to regional authorities. Twenty-eight employees were at the location when the thieves struck.

The individuals, considered experienced criminals, were taken into custody soon afterwards in the neighboring community of Vénissieux, according to investigative sources.

A woman involved involved in the robbery was taken into custody as well, according to law enforcement.

“Six suspects who employed explosive devices in an attack on a precious metals company in Lyon were caught in the act,” France's security official declared on social media, praising officers for their “firmness, rapid response and command”.

High-caliber firearms, handguns and detonation devices were also confiscated.

The heist took place as law enforcement in France on Thursday apprehended five additional individuals, featuring a main perpetrator, in relation to the bold Louvre museum robbery.

Numerous detectives have been hunting four perpetrators who employed a truck featuring an elevating platform and cutting gear to breach a first-floor gallery at the museum on the nineteenth of October, making off with precious items estimated to be worth €88 million.

In another notable incident, burglars recently broke into the Parisian museum of natural history, making off with gold samples worth over $1 million. A woman from China, aged 24 was arrested earlier this month in Barcelona, Spain in regarding the theft, according to legal authorities.

The string of thefts has sparked worry in the country regarding insufficient protection at museums and other institutions containing precious artifacts.