Cannes: luxury watch thefts during Festival, man robbed of €400,000 timepiece
A man was robbed outside his home in Cannes of a Richard Mille watch valued at €400,000. Nice's judicial police are leading the investigation.
Watch thefts in Cannes: the Festival under the eyes of criminals
A man was robbed outside his home in Cannes during the Festival of a Richard Mille watch valued at €400,000. According to France Info, two individuals spotted their target leaving a trendy nightclub, followed him to his home, then pointed a handgun at him — despite the presence of a security guard. Nice's judicial police have taken over the investigation.
The Croisette, hunting ground for watch thieves
Cannes has become, in recent years, the epicentre of high-value watch thefts on the French Riviera. Last season, 17 thefts and attempted thefts were recorded there. Luxury hotels, private beaches, Croisette restaurants: all places where wealthy holiday-makers and opportunistic criminals cross paths. The targets wear watches on their wrists whose value can reach one million euros — the price of an apartment. The most common modus operandi remains snatching.
Organised teams from Italy and Spain
The judicial police have identified a recurring profile among the perpetrators. According to investigators, 65 per cent of watch thieves operating on the Côte d'Azur are Spanish or Italian, with a notable presence of Neapolitan teams. Lucas Olivieri, head of the "Watch thefts" unit of the Squadra mobile in Naples, describes their organisation: "Neapolitan teams work with four or five people. There is the spotter, the one who sees. There is always a woman who must take the stolen watch and take it to Naples."
These networks operate within organised crime logic. "It really is one of the manifestations of organised crime. That is to say it is very profitable because when you resell a luxury watch, it finances a whole range of other offences and crimes," emphasises divisional commissioner Éric Antonetti, head of the interdepartmental judicial police service (SIPJ 06).
A police plan bearing fruit
Faced with this threat, the authorities have deployed a reinforced operation. The judicial police have implemented a specific plan, and Spanish and Italian police officers came to reinforce it, infiltrated within the Cannes crowds. This strategy is displaying measurable results: the number of watch thefts fell from 49 in 2022 to 17 last year, a decline of more than 65 per cent in three years.
The Cannes Film Festival, which attracts an affluent international clientele each year, remains nonetheless a preferred target for these structured networks, despite the significant security operation deployed in the city.
Source: France Info