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Another French museum robbery sees 2,000 gold and silver coins stolen
Around 2,000 gold and silver coins worth around €90,000 (£78,000; $104,000) were stolen during a raid at another French museum – just hours after the audacious theft of some of the French crown jewels at the Louvre in Paris.
The incident happened at a museum dedicated to French philosopher Denis Diderot in Landres, north-eastern France on Sunday night.
When the Maison des Lumières (House of Enlightenment) opened on Tuesday, workers noticed a smashed display case and raised the alarm, officials said. The coins were selected with “great expertise”, a statement to French media from the local authority said.
It is the latest in a recent string of heists at cultural institutions across France.
The stolen coins date from between 1790 and 1840 and are part of the city’s private collection, after being discovered in 2011 during renovation work at the building that now houses the museum, according to local media.
Last month, criminals broke into Paris’s Natural History Museum, making off with six gold nuggets worth around €1.5m.
A Chinese national was arrested in Barcelona in connection with this raid while trying to dispose of some melted down gold, according to prosecutors. She was charged earlier this month and is being held in pre-trial detention.
Also in September, thieves stole two Chinese porcelain dishes and a vase with an estimated combined worth of €6.55m from the national porcelain museum in the central city of Limoges. The items are still missing and no arrests have been made.
“They’re unsaleable on the art market. The pieces are too easily traceable anyway because they’re so well listed,” a ceramics expert told Le Parisien newspaper at the time.
The heist that has made headlines across the globe was the brazen daylight robbery of €88m worth of historic jewellery from the Louvre museum in Paris.
A gang disguised as workers used power-tools and a mechanical ladder to gain access to the first-floor Gallery of Apollo in the world’s most visited museum shortly after it opened on Sunday.
The loot included a diamond and emerald necklace Emperor Napoleon gave to his wife, a tiara worn by Empress Eugenie, the wife of Napoleon III, and several pieces previously owned by Queen Marie-Amelie.
Art detective Arthur Brand told the BBC museums across Europe could see a flurry of copycat raids in the coming months.
If someone can target the Louvre and escape with the French crown jewels, local thieves may think “let’s try our nearest museum”, he said.
Security is clearly a problem for many cultural institutions, he said, before adding that compared to a heavily protected jewellery store, a museum with lax security and unarmed guards is a ripe target for robbers.
The Louvre heist – as well as the other incidents – have raised concerns in France around the lax security at institutions that house some of its most prized treasures.
Speaking publicly for the first time since the heist, the Louvre’s director Laurence des Cars told French senators on Wednesday that CCTV around the Louvre’s perimeter was weak and aging.
The only camera monitoring the exterior wall of the Louvre where the theives broke in was pointing away from the first-floor balcony that led to the gallery housing the jewels, she said.
“We failed these jewels,” des Cars said, adding that no-one was protected from “brutal criminals – not even the Louvre”.
A preliminary report found one in three rooms in the Louvre lacked CCTV and that its wider alarm system did not go off.
Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin said security protocols had “failed”, lamenting that the thieves being able to drive a modified truck up to the museum had left France with a “terrible image”.
In the case of the gold stolen from the French Natural History Museum, the building’s alarm and surveillance systems had been disabled by a cyber-attack, with the thieves apparently aware of this, French media reported at the time.
(BBC)
President Anura Kumara Dissanayake today (20) paid his last respects to the remains of Most Venerable Kappetiyagoda Siri Wimala Thera, Anunayake of the Sri Lanka Ramanna Maha Nikaya and Chief Incumbent of the Rajopawanaramaya Temple in Gatambe, Kandy, who passed away.
The President visited the Rajopawanaramaya Temple in Gatambe, Kandy, where the remains of the Thera are lying, and paid his last respects. He subsequently expressed his deepest condolences to the Maha Sangha and the temple’s Dayaka Sabha, who are mourning the passing of the Thera.
Central Province Governor and Consultant Physician Dr Harsha Suranga Fernando, Kandy District Secretary Indika Udawatta and several others were present.
President’s Media Division (PMD)
India opener Shafali Verma has received an official reprimand and a demerit point for breaching Level 1 of the ICC Code of Conduct during the second T20I against Zimbabwe on Sunday.
Shafali, an ICC release said, breached Article 2.2 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel, which relates to “abuse of cricket equipment or clothing, ground equipment or fixtures and fittings during an International Match.”
It was Shafali’s first offence in a 24-month period.
The incident occurred in the 12th over of Zimbabwe’s innings when Shafali threw the ball into the ground in frustration after dropping a chance at mid-off offered by Chipo Mugeri-Tiripano off Sree Charani.
Shafali admitted the offence and accepted the sanction proposed by match referee GS Lakshmi, which meant there was no need for a formal hearing.
Level 1 breaches carry a minimum penalty of an official reprimand, a maximum penalty of 50% of a player’s match fee, and one or two demerit points.
India currently lead the three-match series 2-0 with the third game to be played on Tuesday evening. The T20Is will be followed by three ODIs in Vadodara from October 23.
(Cricinfo)
A total of 146 players will be competing for 27 available slots in the WPL 2027 mini auction on October 28 in Kochi. Of these, England batter Sophia Dunkley and Australia captain Sophie Molineux are the only two players who have listed themselves at the maximum base price of INR 50 lakh.
The auction pool has 119 Indian players, including 22 capped and 97 uncapped players, with 20 slots available for Indian players. The overseas pool has 27 players – 14 capped and 13 uncapped – including six from Associate teams, with seven slots available.
G Kamalini (released by Mumbai Indians), Kiran Navigre (released by U P Warriorz), Heather Graham and Jess Jonassen have registered at the second-highest base price of INR 40 lakh, while a total of 30 players have registered at INR 30 lakh.
Among the notable absentees are West Indies allrounder Deandra Dottin, who was released by UPW, and Australia legspinner Alana King, who was released by Delhi Capitals. Lizelle Lee, who was DC’s highest run-scorer last season, has also not listed herself after being released by the franchise.
What the teams look like going into the auction
Only two English players – Dunkley and Kira Chathli (INR 10 lakh) – have registered for the auction, with several others, including Danni Wyatt-Hodge, Alice Capsey, Dani Gibson, Lauren Filer and Linsey Smith opting to skip the WPL next year.
Cricinfo has learned that England are likely to play three T20Is in Sri Lanka in early February, which will clash with the final week of the WPL. While the ECB is likely to allow players to stay in India to complete the tournament, most players have instead chosen to prioritise their international commitments ahead of the Champions Trophy later that month.
The relatively low salaries on offer at the WPL are also understood to be a factor in many English players deciding not to register, with most internationals earning significantly more to play in the Hundred (up to £190,000 last year) than the highest permitted base price in the WPL of INR 50 lakh (£40,000 approx).
Molineux was part of the Royal Challengers Bengaluru [RCB] title-winning squad in 2024, and had bagged 12 wickets in ten games at an economy rate of 7.31. She was retained by RCB for the 2025 season but a knee injury ruled her out of the season. Dunkley, meanwhile, played for Gujarat Giants [GT] in 2023 before opting not to register for the 2024 season. She went unsold in the 2025 auction.
Among the premier internationals who have listed themselves for INR 30 lakh are Australia allrounder Grace Harris (released by RCB), Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu, South Africa left-arm spinner Nonkululeko Mlaba and South Africa allrounder Chloe Tryon.
UPW, who released nine players, will go into the auction with the biggest purse of INR 3.75 crore.
[Cricinfo]
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