Police hunt gang in historical watch heist
Thieves have emptied a Swiss watch museum of almost its entire collection of rare historical Swiss-made watches worth millions of Swiss francs.
The robbery was carried out around 8.30am Thursday at the Girard-Perregaux Museum in La Chaux-de-Fonds in northwest Switzerland. Local police have described the theft as “an incalculable loss for Swiss watch heritage”.
Two men posing as deliverymen overpowered, bound and gagged a woman who was cleaning the museum, which belongs to luxury watchmaker Girard-Perregaux, said investigating magistrate Sylvie Favre.
At least three robbers then broke display cases and took virtually all the watches on display, Favre said.
The priceless collection of around 100 exclusive watches included unique timepieces such as the Tourbillon with three gold bridges and handmade pieces encrusted with jewels.
Selling the haul, estimated to be worth several million francs, will be difficult because each watch is registered, she added.
The robbers fled in a large, dark vehicle, possibly heading across the border to nearby France, Favre said. She said the cleaner was able to free herself and summon help.
Since 1999 Girard-Perregaux had built up a collection of more than one hundred historical and modern timepieces that represent the history of watchmaking.
swissinfo with agencies
Girard-Perregaux is a Swiss manufacturer of complex timepieces. The company can trace its origins to 1791 making it one of the older manufacturers within the industry.
The current name, however, did not appear until 1854 when watchmaker Constant Girard married Marie Perregaux and the modern company was born.
Girard-Perregaux is well known within the watchmaking world for creating the unique Tourbillon with three gold bridges watch movement.
The company can also claim true manufacture status, meaning that it produces the vast majority of the movements used within their timepieces, rather than relying on stock or parts made by other companies.
In compliance with the JTI standards
More: SWI swissinfo.ch certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.