Armed robbers hit Paris Bulgari jewellery boutique

Armed robbers raided the Bulgari luxury jewellery boutique in the swanky Place Vendome in central Paris in broad daylight Saturday, making off with an estimated several million euros' worth of items, police and prosecutors said.

Three people who arrived on two motorbikes entered the store in the popular tourist district at around 1:45pm local time (1145 GMT), a police source said, citing preliminary information.

Two were carrying long weapons, the source added, saying they had hit a security guard.

The full extent of the haul and damage estimated at several million euros (dollars) was still being assessed, another source close to the inquiry told AFP.

The same Bulgari boutique was also targeted in a daylight armed robbery in September 2021, when thieves made off with some 10 million euros ($10.6 million) in loot.

Video footage posted on social media networks on Saturday appeared to show two large black motorbikes parked on the pavement in front of the jewellery shop.

A man in a helmet with a gun and wearing black clothes is seen apparently standing guard.

Later, three men can be seen fleeing the scene on two motorbikes. An investigation into armed robbery has been opened, the Paris prosecutor's office said.

Following the 2021 heist at the Bulgari store, one of the robbers was wounded in the leg by a police officer.

He was arrested, charged and imprisoned.

In June 2022, two other suspects, aged 26 and 37 at the time, were arrested.

They were also charged and placed in pre-trial detention. The Italian jeweller Bulgari is owned by the French fashion conglomerate LVMH.(AFP)