Six Suspects Apprehended After €12M Heist on Gold Refining Lab in France

Six armed perpetrators equipped with high-powered firearms used explosive devices to break into a gold refining laboratory located in Lyon, France, slightly injuring five workers during described as the newest significant daylight theft to occur in the nation.

The audacious robbery took place on Thursday late morning, with officers swiftly apprehending the individuals believed responsible and securing the stolen items estimated to be worth €12 million (£10.5M), officials reported.

Five employees of the gold refining company received light wounds due to the explosion, and three individuals were taken to a medical facility for assessment, according to regional authorities. Twenty-eight employees were present on-site when the robbers attacked.

Those arrested, believed to be experienced criminals, were detained shortly after the incident in the adjacent municipality of Vénissieux, according to investigative sources.

A female participant who participated in the raid was likewise arrested, according to law enforcement.

“Six suspects who utilized explosives in a raid against a metals processing plant in the Lyon area were caught in the act,” the French interior minister declared on social media, commending law enforcement for their “firmness, rapid response and command”.

Military-style weapons, pistols and explosive materials were likewise seized.

The robbery occurred as authorities on the same day detained five further people, featuring a main perpetrator, in relation to the bold Louvre museum robbery.

Dozens of investigators have been searching for four thieves who employed a truck with a hydraulic lift and cutting tools to breach a first-floor gallery at the renowned museum on October 19th, making off with precious items estimated to be worth 88 million euros.

In a separate high-profile case, robbers the previous month broke into the French capital's Natural History Museum, taking gold specimens valued at more than one million dollars. A young Chinese female was taken into custody recently in Barcelona in connection with the break-in, prosecutors stated.

The sequence of heists has raised concerns in France regarding insufficient protection at museums and other institutions containing precious artifacts.