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Chinese woman charged over gold theft at Paris Natural History Museum

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2 months ago

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AFP

Published



October 21, 2025

A Chinese woman has been arrested and charged over the theft of gold from the Natural History Museum in Paris, in one of several recent high-profile break-ins targeting French cultural institutions, a prosecutor said Tuesday.

Inside the Natural History Museum in Paris – Museum National d’Histoire Naturelle- Facebook

The theft — by what the museum’s director at the time said was an “extremely professional team”- took place on September 16, a little over a month before an audacious jewellery heist at the world-famous Louvre museum on Sunday.

A 24-year-old Chinese woman was arrested in Barcelona on September 30 over the Natural History Museum break-in and theft of gold worth more than $1 million, Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau said.

The suspect was handed over to French authorities on October 13 and was charged with theft and criminal conspiracy and put in provisional detention the same day.

Investigations showed she had left France the day of the break-in and was preparing to return to China. At the time of her arrest, she was trying to dispose of nearly one kilogram (2.2 pounds) of melted gold pieces, the prosecutor said, without providing more details.

The Natural History Museum curator discovered the theft of exhibited gold nuggets after a cleaner reported debris on site. The stolen items included nuggets from Bolivia donated in the 18th century, from Russia’s Ural region gifted by Tsar Nicholas I in 1833, and from California dating to the gold rush era.

A five-kilogramme nugget from Australia discovered in 1990 was also taken, Beccuau said. Nearly six kilograms of native gold was stolen, with damages estimated at 1.5 million euros ($1.7 million), she added, noting that the historical and scientific value of the pieces was “priceless”.

Native gold is a metal alloy containing gold and silver in their natural, unrefined form.

Investigators found two museum doors had been cut with a grinder and the display case breached using a blowtorch. Tools including a blowtorch, grinder, screwdriver, gas cylinders and saws were recovered nearby.

Surveillance footage showed a lone intruder entering the museum shortly after 1:00 am and leaving around 4:00 am, according to Beccuau. The investigation is ongoing, she added.

Police are also still on the hunt for thieves who stole priceless royal jewels from the Louvre museum in a spectacular daylight robbery on Sunday. The heist has reignited a row over a lack of security in France’s museums.

Copyright © 2025 AFP. All rights reserved. All information displayed in this section (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by Agence France-Presse. As a consequence you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the contents of this section without the prior written consent of Agence France-Presses.



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Anahí India: Portuguese brand crafting pieces from saris opens first store at Lisbon’s 8Marvila

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8 minutes ago

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December 8, 2025

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December 9, 2025

Friends and business partners Ana Abreu and Rita Galamba have just opened, at 8Marvila in Lisbon, the first bricks-and-mortar space for their Portuguese brand, Anahí India — a name that nods to original Indian pieces and to those created from traditional saris, from a country first reached by sea by Vasco da Gama in the 15th century and whose nationals are among the largest immigrant communities in Portugal, alongside Angolans and Brazilians.

Instagram

India is also the guiding inspiration for the entrepreneurial duo’s label, and they now oversee in-house, local production in both countries.

Measuring around 25 square metres, the new shop showcases unisex jackets, dresses and kimonos — a line they began selling nearly a decade ago at music festivals, initially with men’s shirts brought directly from India by the founders. There is no shortage of accessories either, such as sarongs or karnatakas, and jewellery featuring traditional styles and motifs.

The duo opened Anahí India’s debut shop at the end of November, presenting the brand’s full range and making a point of asserting its identity, despite the clean and industrial aesthetic choices of the alternative space, which stand in constant contrast to the vibrant colours and intricate patterns of the recycled and repurposed fabrics used throughout the collections.

In addition to the “unique and exclusive pieces of Indian origin,” Anahí India also offers designs created collaboratively, resulting in styles that both Ana and Rita would wear all year round, in materials such as silk.

Instagram

Another update: until December 12, “we’ll be in Praça D. Luís for the Time Out Lisboa Christmas fair,” the brand announces on its social media channels, inviting you to “discover exclusive pieces and find stylish gifts,” as noted on the brand’s Instagram account.

“And of course… Don’t forget our store at Rua Marvila 8, open from Thursday to Sunday, from 12 noon to 8 pm — always ready to welcome you with the best energy,” the brand added, while also highlighting the goal of continuing to grow online, where it explains: “At the heart of our brand lies a deep commitment to sustainability and the preservation of India’s rich textile heritage,” it said via its website.

“The materials used are, in fact, recycled Indian saris, reimagined and reinvented to create unique fashion pieces. This process not only respects the environment, but also pays homage to the history and art of India.”

According to the website: “The Anahí brand is a story of beauty, culture and sustainability that originated in India, where the charm of recycled Indian saris is transformed into fashion, and which established itself in Portugal in 2017,” it further explained.

“Anahí represents a true fusion of cultures and traditions, with production in both India and Portugal. This intercultural collaboration results in a diverse range of clothing and accessories that combine the essence of East and West.”

This article is an automatic translation.

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FBI is probing diamond deals struck by founder of jeweler Lugano

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39 minutes ago

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December 8, 2025

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By

Bloomberg

Published



December 9, 2025

Federal authorities are investigating off balance-sheet transactions involving Lugano Diamonds & Jewelry, a chain of high-end boutiques that’s accused its founder of misrepresenting diamond investments he brokered with wealthy clients.

Lugano

FBI agents have interviewed individuals who struck deals with Lugano founder and former chief executive officer Mordechai “Moti” Ferder as part of an investigation into the business, according to people familiar with the matter. A Lugano spokesman said the boutique is cooperating with the probe.

The Newport Beach, California-based chain of about a half-dozen shops, which is majority owned by Compass Diversified, sued Ferder in June and accused him of manipulating Lugano’s accounts by disguising the gem-backed financing as direct sales. Lugano filed for bankruptcy protection last month and Ferder is residing in his native Israel, according to court documents filed by the company.

Lugano, Ferder or related parties have been sued by about a dozen individuals or firms over the diamond investment contracts. The boutique has claimed Ferder entered into financing deals that together may represent more than $100 million in liabilities to the business. Compass said in May it would restate its financial statements.

Ferder’s lawyer Jeffrey Reeves said his client hasn’t been contacted by the FBI or the Department of Justice. 

“Mr. Ferder maintains his innocence and denies any criminal wrongdoing,” Reeves said. “We remain focused on defeating the civil claims brought against him as well as prosecuting the counterclaims he intends to file against Compass Diversified, Lugano, and others.” 

An FBI spokesperson didn’t reply to multiple requests for comment.

Lugano said in its lawsuit filed in a state court in California that Ferder offered clients stakes in valuable diamonds that the boutique already owned, promising hefty returns once the gems were sold. The lawsuit claims Feder told Lugano personnel that the deals were ordinary sales. Feder has denied the allegations and claimed Lugano and Compass were aware of the contracts.

Lugano interim CEO Josh Gaynor said in a June email to an investor who sued Ferder that those “who have expressed interest in any parallel criminal investigations” may wish to contact an FBI agent, according to court documents filed in an investor lawsuit. The agent has been assigned to the complex financial crime squad in the agency’s Los Angeles field office, according to papers filed in unrelated court cases.      

A Compass spokesman said the firm “has been cooperating with the authorities investigating this matter, as well as conducting our own extensive internal investigation.”

Compass released its restated earnings on Monday and said in a securities filing that its internal investigation determined Lugano’s former chief executive officer “deliberately engaged in fraudulent activity” by recording fictitious sales and misrepresenting the value of the jewelry boutique’s inventory. The conglomerate is now focused on cutting debt and “putting this chapter behind us,” Compass CEO Elias Sabo said. It is considering selling some businesses to reduce debt, it told investors last week. 

The group acquired a 60% stake in Lugano in 2021 for $198 million and opened additional locations in the US and London, which was recently closed, according to court papers.

The boutique is planning to sell its business in Chapter 11. In September, a holding company that owns Ferder’s shares in Lugano as well as a title to an Aspen property also filed for bankruptcy. Ferder ceded control of the holding company to Lugano’s chief restructuring officer, according to court papers.



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New Look appoints new retail director to spearhead omnichannel strategy

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6 hours ago

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December 8, 2025

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Published



December 8, 2025

Women’s fashion brand New Look has a new retail director with Mark Matthews joining at “a pivotal time” for the 18-44 age-group-sector retailer. He replaces Elaine Cartwright who has just joined M&S as stores director of innovation and implementation.

New Look

With extensive retail experience across a range of brands — Bonmarché, George at Asda and Selfridges — Matthews will be responsible for New Look’s store estate and, importantly, implementing its omnichannel strategy across stores “to drive sales and enhance the customer experience”.

From those previous three businesses, his expertise spans operations, visual merchandising and in-store digital. He also brings “a strong track record of enhancing product ranges and modernising stores to improve service and sales”, while also having worked on “future store propositions that strengthen omnichannel integration and colleague engagement”, New Look said of its new appointment.

Key will be his focus on the brand’s omnichannel strategy “optimising its store network to better serve customers across the UK”, it added.

Matthews will be part of New Look’s director team, succeeding Cartwright who had spent over a decade at the retailer.

Helen Connolly, CEO of New Look, said: “Our store estate is a vital part of our omnichannel strategy, and… Mark brings extensive industry expertise and a customer-first mindset that will be key to our next phase of store development.”

That evolving strategy has already seen recent store upgrades, including concept launches at the Bluewater mall in Kent, and in Manchester, which have “delivered strong double-digit like-for-like sales growth, reflecting the brand’s focus on innovation, digital integration and elevating the customer journey,” New Look noted.

It said over the past five years it has “transformed the business and its digital offer, upgrading the website and app, developing a 10 million-strong engaged customer base and maintain category-leading positions in dresses, denim, outerwear, and footwear”.

Earlier this year, it announced a £30 million investment to power the next phase of its digital growth. Part of this investment has supported the development of New Look’s first loyalty app, Club New Look. Following a successful soft launch in summer, it now claims over 700,000 members, “which the store teams have played a significant role in securing”.

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