Louvre Heist Suspect Rachid H. Denied Release by Paris Court

A Paris Court of Appeal ruled Wednesday that Rachid H., a suspect in the October 2025 Louvre jewel heist, must remain in pre-trial detention. The 40-year-old, detained since November 2025, is one of several people arrested after thieves stole roughly $100 million worth of crown jewels from the museum, Le Figaro reports.

What happened at the Louvre?

The heist unfolded in roughly seven minutes on the morning of Sunday, October 19, 2025. A four-person gang used a truck-mounted motorized ladder to break into the Louvre's Apollo Gallery through a second-floor window.

Once inside, they smashed two display cases and grabbed eight pieces of jewelry. In their haste, they dropped a crown once owned by Empress Eugénie. As alarms sounded, the thieves fled on two motorized scooters.

The stolen jewels have not been recovered.

Who has been arrested?

Police made their first arrests within a month of the heist:

• Abdoulaye N., 40 — an unlicensed taxi driver with prior robbery convictions, known online for motocross stunts
• Ghelamallah A., 36 — an unemployed Algerian national
• Rachid H., 40 — detained since November 2025 on suspicion of providing the robbers with keys

Both Abdoulaye N. and Ghelamallah A. have admitted involvement. But their testimony has raised more questions than it has answered.

Why did the court keep Rachid H. behind bars?

In June, the two admitted thieves told investigators that an unnamed sponsor had recruited them for the job. They said they joined the plot only days before October 19, and that the principal accomplice who gave the orders remains at large. They also claimed the men arrested after them — including Rachid H. — had nothing to do with the crime. According to their account, the purported mastermind entered the Louvre with the robbers and is still free.

That testimony cuts in Rachid H.'s favor. So does the physical evidence, according to his defense: his fingerprints were found neither on the truck used in the heist nor in the parking lot in Aubervilliers where the robbers allegedly handed the jewels to an unidentified individual.

The case against him rests on the parking keys. Investigators suspect him of providing the robbers with keys to the Aubervilliers parking facility. In January, AFP reported that he admitted having "passed" the keys to "two people" but maintained that he knew nothing about the robbery.

What does this change for the case?

The court's decision signals that judges still consider Rachid H. a flight risk or a threat to the investigation, despite his co-defendants' claims that he wasn't involved. With the jewels still missing, an unnamed sponsor unaccounted for and a purported mastermind at large, the investigation now hinges on untangling contradictory testimonies. Until someone names the sponsor, the $100 million question — where the eight stolen pieces ended up — stays open.