Six Arrested After 12 Million Euro Armed Raid on Gold Processing Laboratory in France

Six armed perpetrators carrying assault rifles and handguns employed explosives to force entry into a gold treatment facility located in the city of Lyon, resulting in minor injuries to five workers during what is being called the most recent prominent daytime heist to affect the nation.

The daring raid occurred on Thursday afternoon, with officers rapidly detaining the suspected perpetrators and retrieving the loot valued at approximately €12 million (£10.5M), as stated by authorities.

Five staff members of the precious metals facility received light wounds from the blast, and three employees were taken to a medical facility for examination, the regional prefecture announced. Twenty-eight workers were inside the facility when the robbers attacked.

The suspects, thought to be seasoned offenders, were taken into custody shortly after the incident in the nearby town of Vénissieux, France, a source close to the investigation stated.

A female participant who took part in the heist was also apprehended, officers confirmed.

“Six individuals who utilized explosives in a raid against a gold refining facility in Lyon, France were apprehended red-handed,” the French interior minister stated online, praising officers for their “quick action, authority and management”.

Military-style weapons, pistols and explosive materials were recovered as well.

The robbery occurred as authorities on Thursday arrested five more suspects, including a primary suspect, in connection with this month's brazen theft at the Louvre.

Dozens of investigators have been hunting four robbers who employed a truck with a hydraulic lift and cutting tools to break into an upper-level exhibition space at the museum on October 19th, fleeing with precious items estimated to be worth €88M.

In another notable incident, robbers the previous month forced their way into the Parisian museum of natural history, stealing gold samples worth over $1 million. A young Chinese female was arrested earlier this month in Barcelona, Spain in relation to the burglary, officials confirmed.

This series of robberies has raised concerns in France regarding insufficient protection at cultural venues and other facilities holding high-value objects.