Six Suspects Apprehended After 12 Million Euro Armed Raid on Precious Metals Facility in France

A team of six suspects carrying assault rifles and handguns used explosive devices to force entry into a gold treatment facility located in the city of Lyon, resulting in minor injuries to five employees during described as the latest high-profile broad daylight robbery to affect the country.

The bold operation occurred on Thursday afternoon, with law enforcement authorities swiftly apprehending the suspected perpetrators and retrieving the loot estimated to be worth €12M (10.5 million pounds), as stated by authorities.

Five workers of Laboratoires Pourquery were slightly hurt due to the explosion, and three of them were transported to hospital for evaluation, the regional prefecture announced. Twenty-eight employees were present on-site when the perpetrators raided.

Those arrested, considered career criminals, were detained shortly after the incident in the neighboring community of Vénissieux, France, a source close to the investigation stated.

A female participant who took part in the raid was taken into custody as well, officers confirmed.

“Six individuals who utilized explosives in an assault targeting a metals processing plant in Lyon were apprehended red-handed,” France's security official declared on social media, praising officers for their “firmness, rapid response and command”.

Assault rifles, handguns and explosives were recovered as well.

The raid happened as law enforcement in France on the same day detained five further people, including a primary suspect, in connection with this month's brazen theft at the Louvre.

Dozens of investigators have been searching for four thieves who used a vehicle equipped with a moving lift and cutting gear to breach a first-floor gallery at the renowned museum on the nineteenth of October, escaping with jewelry valued at approximately €88M.

In a separate high-profile case, burglars recently forced their way into the Parisian museum of natural history, stealing gold samples valued at more than one million dollars. A young Chinese female was taken into custody recently in the city of Barcelona in connection with the break-in, prosecutors stated.

This series of robberies has sparked worry in the nation regarding lax security at museums and other institutions holding high-value objects.