Six Individuals Detained Following 12 Million Euro Heist on Precious Metals Facility in France

A team of six suspects using assault rifles and handguns employed explosives to force entry into a gold treatment facility located in Lyon, slightly injuring five employees during described as the latest high-profile daytime heist to hit the nation.

The audacious robbery was carried out on Thursday late morning, with officers swiftly apprehending the alleged criminals and securing the stolen items valued at approximately €12 million (£10.5 million), according to officials.

Five employees of the precious metals facility were slightly hurt from the blast, and three individuals were taken to a medical facility for assessment, officials confirmed. Twenty-eight employees were at the location when the robbers attacked.

The suspects, believed to be seasoned offenders, were arrested shortly after the incident in the adjacent municipality of Vénissieux, France, a source close to the investigation stated.

A female participant involved in the raid was likewise arrested, according to law enforcement.

“Six individuals who used detonations in a raid against a gold refining facility in the Lyon area were caught in the act,” France's security official announced via X, lauding police for their “decisiveness, speed and control”.

Assault rifles, handguns and explosives were also confiscated.

The robbery occurred as authorities on the same day arrested five more suspects, among them a key figure, in connection with the recent audacious raid on the Louvre museum.

Dozens of investigators have been searching for four perpetrators who used a vehicle featuring an elevating platform and cutting gear to access a gallery on the first floor at the prestigious institution on 19 October, making off with ornaments assessed at around 88 million euros.

In a different significant robbery, thieves last month broke into the Parisian museum of natural history, taking gold specimens valued at more than one million dollars. A woman from China, aged 24 was taken into custody recently in the city of Barcelona in connection with the break-in, prosecutors stated.

The string of thefts has sparked worry in France regarding lax security at cultural venues and other facilities containing precious artifacts.