Armed men get away with $4 million of jewelry from De Beers outlet in Paris

Two armed men wearing bullet-proof vests escaped with $4 million of jewelry in a raid on the De Beers concession in the world-famous Printemps department store in central Paris on Tuesday evening, according to police.

The two robbers, who brandished handguns, stole the jewelry from De Beers outlet on the first-floor of the Printemps. The thieves did not shoot and no one was injured.

The thieves went up to the De Beers outlet at about 18.45, an hour or so before it was due to close for the day. They demanded that a salesperson unlock the display cases, and they took out the contents of two cases before exiting via a staircase at the rear of the building.

A witness said the men seemed to know the layout of the store very well, since it employs a state-of-the-art surveillance system.

The raid was also carried out so professionally that few employees and almost no shoppers knew that it had happened.

In an unusual coincidence, the raid took place one day after a daring raid by a group of robbers led to the theft of around $50 million of diamonds as they were being loaded onto a plane at Brussels airport.