Jewel heist sees $1million worth of gems stolen at Cannes
JEWELS worth more than $1million have been stolen from a hotel near Cannes Film Festival in a crime which could have come straight from a blockbuster movie.
French police confirmed gems were taken from a small safe in a room at the Novotel hotel in Nice overnight, which was being rented by a a representative of Swiss-based watch and jewellery maker Chopard.
The company is a sponsor of the film festival and has loaned expensive jewellery to A list stars as they walk along red carpets, including model Cara Delevingne and actress Julianne Moore.
Judicial police spokesman Cmdr. Bernard Mascarelli said: "Apparently this (hotel guest) was someone who was targeted because it wasn't someone who had been seeking attention.
"There must have been either an inside complicity, or people who were in contact with this person and knew that the person had jewels."
Jean-Michel Caillau, the prosecutor in nearby Grasse who is leading an investigation, said early estimates were that the loot could have been worth as much as $1.4 million. He also said the theft appeared to have taken place around 2:30 a.m. Friday.
The daring theft took place just hours after the screening of Sofia Coppola's new film 'The Bling Ring', which tells the true story of teenagers who broke into the homes of stars in Los Angeles to swipe designer bags, shoes and clothes from their homes.
A Paris-based spokeswoman for Chopard, who declined to identify herself, said the company would not comment, and Melissa Levine, a spokeswoman for Accor, the French hospitality giant behind Novotel, also declined comment.
Chopard, which maintains a suite in a five-star hotel during the festival, also manufactures the crystal and gold Palme d'Or trophy awarded each year to the festival's top film.
Festival organizers would not disclose the Palme's whereabouts Friday, but said it was kept in a safe place.
The festival had no comment on the robbery.
