Six Suspects Apprehended After €12M Robbery on Gold Refining Lab in France

A group of six individuals equipped with assault rifles and handguns detonated charges to force entry into a precious metals processing plant located in the city of Lyon, resulting in minor injuries to five employees during what appears to be the newest significant daytime heist to occur in the nation.

The bold operation occurred on Thursday late morning, with officers rapidly detaining the suspected perpetrators and securing the stolen items estimated to be worth €12 million (10.5 million pounds), as stated by authorities.

Five employees of Laboratoires Pourquery received light wounds from the blast, and three employees were transported to hospital for examination, officials confirmed. Twenty-eight employees were present on-site when the thieves struck.

Those arrested, considered experienced criminals, were taken into custody a brief time later in the neighboring community of Vénissieux, France, according to investigative sources.

A woman involved who participated in the heist was likewise arrested, according to law enforcement.

“Six suspects who employed explosive devices in a raid against a gold refining facility in Lyon were arrested at the scene,” the nation's interior minister announced via X, commending law enforcement for their “decisiveness, speed and control”.

Assault rifles, handguns and explosives were likewise seized.

The raid happened as authorities on the same day detained five further people, including a primary suspect, in relation to the recent audacious raid on the Louvre museum.

Dozens of investigators have been hunting four robbers who used a vehicle equipped with a moving lift and cutting gear to access a gallery on the first floor at the museum on 19 October, fleeing with precious items estimated to be worth €88M.

In another notable incident, thieves last month broke into the French capital's Natural History Museum, making off with gold samples estimated at exceeding $1M. A 24-year-old Chinese woman was taken into custody recently in Barcelona in regarding the theft, according to legal authorities.

The string of thefts has generated apprehension in the country regarding inadequate security measures at museums and various establishments housing valuable items.