By Megha Lakha
Many Lovett students’ Insta feeds and TikTok For You Pages are still buzzing with news about the Louvre Heist. On October 19th, thieves disguised as construction workers snuck into the museum and stole 8 pieces of jewelry valued at approximately $102 million.
Students were struck by this heist because it only took 8 minutes and occurred in broad daylight, yet no one caught them.
This has led observers to arrive at some rather interesting conclusions. Senior Jackson Liu said he saw a TikTok saying, “If they could rob the Louvre in eight minutes, then you can do anything.”
Then again, junior Valeria Benitez pointed out that the bar was not set particularly high. “The password to the security system is literally Louvre,” and “at that point, you’re just not trying.” ABC News confirmed the password claim.
Seniors Thomas Bomar and Finn Graber agree that the heist was silly. “They climbed a ladder, and then they got off on scooters,” Finn said. ”Like, come on, man, it’s the Louvre.”
The heist had gained so much social media coverage that students even dressed up as the robbers for Halloween. Senior Zara Hebb, who dressed as one of the robbers, said, “The robbers were smart to steal jewelry because they could melt it down, making it untraceable.”
Zara wishes her gem collection were a fraction as cool as the Louvre’s. “I would totally wear that stuff,” she said. Senior Emerson Courage chimed in, saying that if Zara ever robs a museum, they will pull up this article as evidence.
It seems like many students have a strong fixation with the heist. AP Art History teacher Ms. Waterman thinks the interest in the robbery is because “this is the biggest and maybe only art heist in students’ lifetimes.” Senior Katherine Molner, for one, is grateful. “I’m glad heists are back because they’re entertaining,” she said.
Senior Ella Carothers, on the other hand, was more focused on the robber’s looks. “I think the suspected robbers are attractive,” she said. “Those were good mugshots.” Her comment embodies what our generation is focused on. Ms. Waterman would probably sigh at Ella’s comment because she said, “The cultural vacuum is lost on us nowadays.”
According to the Lovett Honor Code, a Lovett student will not lie, cheat, or steal. However, when I asked some students what they would hypothetically steal from the Louvre if they could, I received mixed responses. “I would steal the Mona Lisa because she’s iconic,” sophomore Parker Fletcher said. Senior Riya Patel joked, “I would never steal—that’s terrible!” A true Lovett student indeed.
While we Americans may find the heist amusing, Ms. Waterman says she sees art as a “huge sense of national pride for the French.” She said it’s going to be hard to handle this now because the French rely on tourism. “I think this event was a huge loss to the nation,” Ms. Waterman said.
Ms. Waterman said she “got like ten different messages from former students.” She also “heard from several students that they’re silently cheering for the robbers.”
As of now, the stolen items haven’t been recovered, but the police believe they have identified the core four-person theft team behind the iconic heist, with the fourth member being charged in late November. The police are still searching for the missing jewels, though…
