Louvre thieves escaped with just 30 seconds to spare, inquiry finds

A police car in the courtyard of the Louvre museum (AP)

Thieves who stole more than 100 million dollars in crown jewels from the Louvre in October escaped with barely 30 seconds to spare, a French Senate inquiry has said, as politicians detailed a series of security failures that allowed the gang to slip away in broad daylight.

The parliamentary probe, ordered after the embarrassing heist on October 19, found that only one of two cameras covering the break-in point was functioning and that security staff lacked enough screens to monitor footage in real time.