(MENAFN) The robbery at the Louvre Museum earlier this month was carried out by local perpetrators rather than members of structured crime organizations, the Paris prosecutor stated, as inquiries into the theft of jewels valued at €88 million ($94 million) continue.

Paris Prosecutor Laure Beccuau told a radio on Sunday that the individuals currently facing charges were “local people” from Seine-Saint-Denis, a northern suburb of Paris.

"This is not quite everyday delinquency, but it is a type of delinquency that we do not generally associate with the upper echelons of organized crime," she explained.

Her remarks follow the dramatic incident two weeks ago, when a team of thieves parked a stolen truck outside the Louvre, employed a furniture lift to access the first floor, and entered one of the museum’s most lavish rooms.

Within minutes, they escaped on scooters with royal jewelry, including an emerald and diamond necklace once gifted by Napoleon I to his wife Marie Louise, and a diadem belonging to Empress Eugenie, the spouse of Napoleon III.

Beccuau confirmed that at least one suspect is still on the run. So far, four people have been charged, among them a 37-year-old man and a 38-year-old woman whose DNA was reportedly detected on the lift used in the theft.

The man faces accusations of organized theft and criminal conspiracy, while the woman has been charged with complicity in organized theft.

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