Five men from Lyon arrested for burglary at the Locle Watchmaking Museum
Five men from Lyon were sent for trial and remanded in custody on 17 August for the theft of clocks from the Locle Watchmaking Museum. They are also suspected of a burglary at the Jacques Chirac museum in Corrèze.
Five Lyon suspects indicted following theft of clocks at Locle
The Lyon public prosecutor's office confirmed on Wednesday the committal for trial of five men from Lyon, remanded in custody on Monday 17 August in connection with the burglary of the Locle Watchmaking Museum, in the canton of Neuchâtel. According to Le Temps, the arrest took place on 13 August thanks to collaboration between Swiss authorities.
The five suspects are being pursued for "organised gang theft" and "participation in a criminal association with a view to preparing a crime". They were apprehended aboard a Porsche Panamera, according to a source close to the case cited by franceinfo — a saloon model capable of reaching 300 km/h.
The burglary on 10 August at Château des Monts
The theft at the Locle Watchmaking Museum — located at Château des Monts — was committed during the night of Sunday 10 August. According to a statement from the Locle authorities, "four criminals" had entered the building "in order to steal fewer than ten clocks of cultural heritage value". The perpetrators subsequently fled "aboard a powerful dark-coloured saloon".
Possible link with the Jacques Chirac museum
Another burglary, which occurred on 6 August in Sarran, in Corrèze, is attracting the attention of investigators. The museum dedicated to former French president Jacques Chirac had been visited by unknown individuals who left aboard the same type of vehicle as at Locle — a Porsche Panamera.
The Lyon public prosecutor's office states that "checks will be carried out in particular to determine whether there is legally a link with the acts committed to the detriment of the Jacques Chirac museum on 6 August last". However, it clarifies that "at this stage, the persons presented to the judge on Monday have not been sent for trial" for this first burglary.
Emblematic objects still missing
The Jacques Chirac museum houses approximately 5,000 gifts received by the former head of state, or "up to four per day" during his two terms of office from 1995 to 2007. Among the items stolen during the burglary in Sarran are, still according to franceinfo, a jersey worn by Zinédine Zidane during the 1998 FIFA World Cup as well as a replica of the trophy won by France that year. These two objects have not yet been recovered at this stage of the investigation.
Source: Le Temps