French police have detained nine people in connection with a suspected €10 million ticket fraud scheme at the Louvre, intensifying scrutiny of the world’s most visited museum as it reels from a series of controversies.
On Feb. 10, authorities carried out a coordinated operation targeting what prosecutors described as a large-scale ticketing scheme affecting both the Louvre and the Château de Versailles. Investigators allege the network reused tickets, worked with insiders and manipulated tour entries to avoid additional fees, bringing in as many as 20 groups per day over nearly a decade.
Officials said the perpetrators seized more than $1 million in cash, over $500,000 from bank accounts, three vehicles and several safe deposit boxes. Some funds were allegedly invested in property in France and Dubai. Among those detained are two Louvre employees, several tour guides and a person suspected of organizing the operation. A source close to the investigation told Agence France-Presse that the suspected fraud began in the summer of 2024.
The arrests follow another major incident at the museum just months earlier. On Oct. 19, 2025, thieves entered the Louvre in Paris and stole eight pieces of the French Crown Jewels, spending about four minutes inside before fleeing. The museum, which draws nearly 9 million visitors a year, features 35,000 works of arts and spans roughly 925,000 square feet, is the most visited in the world.
French leaders across the political spectrum reacted to the robbery, one of them being Jordan Bardella, leader of the far-right National Rally party, who framed the theft as proof of a weakened nation unable to safeguard its people or its heritage. Bardella called the robbery an “unbearable humiliation for our country” given the Louvre’s status as a global symbol of French culture.
On Thursday, Alexandre Portier, president of the parliamentary commission investigating museum security, said the Louvre had “become a state within a state” and that the Ministry of Culture must regain control to correct a chain of dysfunctions that allowed the Crown Jewels theft.
As the investigation into the large-scale fraud continues, museum officials have tightened ticket validation controls and introduced additional oversight measures. Kim Pham, the Louvre’s general administrator, told The Associated Press that individual tickets are now limited to two scans, while group tickets can be validated only once, a change designed to prevent tour guides from reusing the same ticket to admit multiple groups. Prosecutors allege that some guides exploited the museum’s multiple entry points and checkpoints to use the same tickets for multiple groups.
Pham added that the museum did not wait for the recent arrests to act. For several months, staff have been conducting checks before visitors reach the main validation points, with additional checks taking place inside the galleries.
The arrests have also revived scrutiny of the museum’s governance. Lawmakers reading a parliamentary inquiry into museum security said the case raises broader questions about internal oversight and accountability in an institution funded by public money. Commission rapporteur Alexis Corbière criticized what he described as an unusually centralized leadership structure and delays in strengthening internal safeguards.
At the same time, the museum is also grappling with internal unrest. During a general assembly on Jan. 26, at least 300 employees voted to continue a strike they began on Dec. 15, aimed at addressing chronic understaffing and pay disparities between Louvre employees and other staff under the Ministry of Culture.
When asked about the recent ticket fraud, Pham told The Associated Press that the museum’s sheer scale and volume of visitors make it particularly vulnerable to operational risks. He declined to speculate on whether other institutions might face similar vulnerabilities.
“What museum in the world, with this level of attendance,” Pham said, “wouldn’t encounter fraud issues at some point?”
The parliamentary commission investigating museum security is scheduled to question Louvre President Laurence des Cars and Minister of Culture Rachida Dati next week.