UPDATE - France arrests 5 more suspects over Louvre Museum burglary in Paris

UPDATE WITH RECENT INFORMATIONS FROM PARIS PROSECUTORS, CHANGES HEADLINE, DECK, LEDE, EDITS THROUGH

By Necva Tastan Sevinc

ISTANBUL (AA) - French authorities have arrested five more suspects in connection with the recent burglary at the Louvre Museum in Paris, judicial sources told RTL on Thursday.

The five suspects were taken into custody simultaneously across several locations in the Paris region around 9 pm local time on Wednesday.

One of the suspects is believed to belong to the so-called “Louvre commando” and to have been present at the scene during the burglary.

Paris Prosecutor Laure Beccuau said two suspects who were arrested earlier on Saturday have “partially confessed to the crimes.”

Speaking to RTL radio, Beccuau confirmed that “they finally admitted,” adding that the investigation “is continuing to identify all those involved.”

Despite the latest arrests, the stolen jewels have not yet been recovered, the prosecutor said.

The arrests come after two other individuals, believed to be his accomplices, were charged and placed in pre-trial detention on Wednesday.

An investigation led by the Paris judicial police is continuing.

The thieves stole eight items from the museum, estimated to be worth €88 million ($102.3 million). The stolen collection includes a necklace and an earring from the Marie-Louise collection, a necklace, earrings, and a tiara from the Marie-Amélie and Hortense collections, and two brooches, a bodice bow, and a tiara from the Empress Eugenie collection.

Investigators later found Eugenie’s crown, which the robbers abandoned near the museum -- a discovery that a Louvre security guard described as evidence that their “plan was thwarted.”