Six Individuals Detained After €12M Armed Raid on Precious Metals Facility in France

Six armed perpetrators equipped with high-powered firearms used explosive devices to force entry into a precious metals processing plant located in the city of Lyon, causing light wounds to five employees during described as the latest high-profile daytime heist to affect France.

The bold operation occurred on Thursday late morning, with officers swiftly apprehending the alleged criminals and securing the stolen items assessed at around €12 million (10.5 million pounds), according to officials.

Five staff members of the gold refining company received light wounds due to the explosion, and three individuals required hospital checks for assessment, officials confirmed. Twenty-eight workers were present on-site when the robbers attacked.

The individuals, considered experienced criminals, were arrested a brief time later in the neighboring community of Vénissieux, a source close to the investigation stated.

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

“Six people who utilized explosives in an attack on a precious metals company in Lyon, France were apprehended red-handed,” France's security official declared on social media, commending law enforcement for their “decisiveness, speed and control”.

High-caliber firearms, handguns and detonation devices were also confiscated.

The heist took place as law enforcement in France on the same day arrested five more suspects, including a primary suspect, in relation to the recent audacious Louvre museum robbery.

Dozens of investigators have been hunting four perpetrators who employed a truck with a hydraulic lift and cutting gear to break into an upper-level exhibition space at the renowned museum on the nineteenth of October, making off with ornaments assessed at around €88 million.

In a separate high-profile case, thieves last month forced their way into the French capital's Natural History Museum, stealing gold samples valued at more than one million dollars. A 24-year-old Chinese woman was arrested earlier this month in Barcelona in relation to the burglary, according to legal authorities.

The string of thefts has raised concerns in France regarding inadequate security measures at museums and other institutions housing valuable items.