Armed raiders rob landmark Chanel store in Paris opposite French Ministry of Justice

Call the fashion police! Gun-wielding thieves launch armed raid on Chanel store in Paris opposite Emmanuel Macron’s Ministry of Justice

  • The gang targeted the Chanel store opposite the French Ministry of Justice 
  • The masked raiders were filmed leaving the store carrying designer goods 
  • The criminals wore helmets with the visors down and carried assault rifles 
  • Chanel have refused to reveal the total value of the goods stolen by the gang 

Armed robbers brazenly carrying assault rifles robbed a Chanel store opposite France’s Ministry of Justice.

The four criminals were filmed as they calmly left the upmarket Paris store yesterday morning after filling up their bags with designer goods.

One astonished witness, who filmed the drama and posted it online, could be heard saying: ‘That’s a hold-up.’

The robbers wore helmets with the visors down as they raided the boutique on the Place Vendome in central Paris. The square is also home to the Ministry of Justice. ‘There did not seem to be any security in the store,’ said another witness.

‘The men pulled up on two bikes, and walked in. They got everyone in the store to lie on the floor, and then loaded up on jewellery and luxury watches. Then they left on their bikes with one of the gang showing off his assault rifle.’

This is the moment a gang of criminals targeted a Chanel store in Paris opposite the French Ministry of Justice 

The four raiders made off on two motorbikes with an unspecified haul of luxury goods

The four raiders made off on two motorbikes with an unspecified haul of luxury goods

Police arrived at the scene after the highly organised criminals had escaped with their haul

Police arrived at the scene after the highly organised criminals had escaped with their haul

Chanel did not disclose the value of the goods taken, and the police, who cordoned off the area shortly after the robbery, have said they have no information on the identity of the criminals.

In July, thieves made off with goods worth almost £2million from a Chaumet store near the Champs-Elysee. A shop run by jewellery brand Dinh Van was hit in the same month.

Speaking about the latest raid, police said at least one of the four, who were all masked and wore helmets, carried an assault rifle, with a witness saying that the others also had automatic weapons.

In a scene that was filmed by a bystander and widely shared on social media, three people are seen dressed in black leaving the boutique while a fourth, carrying an assault rifle on a shoulder strap, waited on a motorcycle.

Members of the public filmed the gang raiding the luxury store which was targeted by four criminals

Members of the public filmed the gang raiding the luxury store which was targeted by four criminals

A witness, 26-year-old Anastasia Martino who works in a clothes store across from Chanel said she was on a cigarette break when she noticed ‘a man with a Kalashnikov on a motorbike’, at around 2:30 pm.

‘Two minutes later, three other men left the boutique carrying big black bags. They, too, had automatic weapons, got on two motorbikes and left in a hurry.’

Her colleague, 31-year-old Cyril Ngo, said the heist lasted a full 10 minutes. ‘These weren’t professionals,’ he said.

The Chanel shop is located on Rue de La Paix, close to Place Vendome, an area with a high concentration of luxury jewellery stores.

Chanel, founded in 1910 by Coco Chanel, is one of France’s leading fashion houses, selling haute couture and ready-to-wear clothes, perfumes, accessories and other luxury items.

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