Six Individuals Detained Following 12 Million Euro Armed Raid on Gold Refining Lab in France

A team of six suspects equipped with high-powered firearms used explosive devices to breach the security of a gold treatment facility located in the city of Lyon, resulting in minor injuries to five staff members during what is being called the newest significant broad daylight robbery to hit the nation.

The audacious robbery was carried out on Thursday afternoon, with officers rapidly detaining the alleged criminals and securing the stolen items estimated to be worth €12M (£10.5M), according to officials.

Five employees of the precious metals facility sustained minor injuries due to the explosion, and three of them were taken to a medical facility for evaluation, according to regional authorities. A total of twenty-eight staff were at the location when the thieves struck.

The individuals, thought to be career criminals, were detained shortly after the incident in the nearby town of the town of Vénissieux, a source close to the investigation stated.

A woman involved who took part in the raid was taken into custody as well, according to law enforcement.

“Six individuals who utilized explosives in a raid against a precious metals company in Lyon, France were caught in the act,” France's security official announced via X, lauding police for their “decisiveness, speed and control”.

Assault rifles, handguns and explosives were recovered as well.

The heist took place as law enforcement in France on the same day detained five further people, featuring a main perpetrator, in regarding this month's brazen Louvre museum robbery.

Many investigative personnel have been searching for four perpetrators who employed a truck with a hydraulic lift and cutting equipment to break into an upper-level exhibition space at the renowned museum on October 19th, escaping with precious items estimated to be worth €88M.

In a different significant robbery, burglars recently entered illegally the Natural History Museum in Paris, making off with gold samples worth over $1 million. A 24-year-old Chinese woman was apprehended in the current month in the city of Barcelona in relation to the burglary, according to legal authorities.

This series of robberies has sparked worry in France regarding lax security at museums and various establishments housing valuable items.