Jewel Thieves In Paris Smash-And-Grab Raid

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A group of thieves have stolen a handbag containing €5m (£3.6m) worth of Chanel jewels from a woman on the road between Paris and Charles De Gaulle airport.

The daring robbery of the Taiwanese art collector happened on Wednesday as the taxi she was travelling in was driving through a long tunnel notorious for robbery attacks on tourists stuck in traffic.

The thieves smashed the car window and snatched the bag.

It is not known at this stage whether or not the thieves were just lucky or knew in advance that there were valuable objects in the bag, including a ring said to be worth €1.7m (£1.2m).

Police say they are keeping an open mind as they investigate the theft of the gems which were to be presented at the Paris Museum of Modern Art, a source said.

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Gallery: Jewel Thieves Hide In Hair Salon After Heist

Two men have robbed a Cartier jewellery store in Paris' Champs-Elysees shopping district

They forced customers and staff to lie down and then demanded the showcases be opened. The robbery was interrupted by the sound of police sirens

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The suspects fled with jewellery and the store's manager as a hostage, but they soon released them and made a getaway on a scooter. They later fell off and took refuge in a hair salon

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The scooter the robbers used to escape is seen on the floor close to the hair salon, the first shop the pair could find

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A two-hour stand-off ensued, with the manager of the salon - who was the only person inside - being taken hostage

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"Either it was an order or they are in the s***," the source said, adding it would be very difficult to sell the items without good contacts because of their exceptional qualities.

The 1.3km (1,400-yard) Landy tunnel is used mostly by people travelling between Paris and the airport.

Local thieves are most often the culprits.

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Gallery: Images Of Hatton Garden Jewel Heist Suspects

Police have released pictures of a van and three suspects wanted in connection with the Hatton Garden jewel heist

The CCTV images show the men using wheelie bins and black bags to raid the safety deposit boxes in London's jewellery quarter over Easter

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The police source said: "It is often local delinquency. They aren't afraid of anything, know the area and escape through emergency exits."

Christina Chernovetska, the daughter of the then mayor of Kiev, was a victim of a similar robbery in February 2010 when a bag which she said held jewels worth €4.5m (£3.2m) was stolen from her.

Even royalty is not immune.

Saudi prince Abdul Aziz Bin Fahd, the multi-millionaire son of the late King Fahd, was the victim of a spectacular armed raid on his convoy last August in which €250,000 (£180,000) and diplomatic papers were stolen.

The robbery comes two weeks after a raid over the Easter weekend in London's Hatton Garden where thieves stole dozens of safety deposit boxes containing what is believed to be tens of millions of pounds' worth of gems and valuables.

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