A Louvre fraud investigation targets a ticketing scam involving guides and museum staff, with six Louvre agents in custody and nine other defendants charged since February in a scheme estimated at over 10 million euros.

The network allegedly allowed up to 20 groups per day to enter the museum over roughly a decade, signaling a sophisticated, long-running fraud operation.

The probe began after a December 2024 Louvre complaint about Chinese guides who allegedly ushered groups in by fraudulently reusing tickets, triggering broader scrutiny.

Authorities seized around 1.5 million euros in cash and 486,000 euros in bank accounts in February, with proceeds reportedly reinvested in real estate in France and Dubai.

Investigators also recovered roughly 957,000 euros in cash and 486,000 euros across bank accounts in February, with some suspected illicit proceeds channeled into real estate ventures abroad.

Officials say they are continuously modernizing tools and procedures to counter ever-evolving fraud techniques and to dismantle the network.

The investigation extends to nearby Versailles, with cross-links between suspect groups and ongoing surveillance, including wiretaps and suspected internal complicity within the Louvre.

Earlier authorities seized nearly 1 million euros in cash and 486,000 euros in bank accounts as concerns grew about how groups of Chinese tourists could be admitted using reused tickets.

The fraud is estimated at more than 10 million euros for the world’s most-visited museum, which follows a high-profile 88 million euro burglary at the Louvre in October 2025.

Louvre leadership, including administrator general Kim Pham, has intensified anti-fraud efforts and said authorities were alerted and complaints filed at the end of 2024.

As of May 12, one Louvre agent was brought before a judge for examination in the ongoing June 2025 inquiry, with five others released and the sixth awaiting further judicial steps.

The scheme involved thousands of visitors entering via guides and accomplices, with routes including group tours admitted through reused or falsified tickets, also affecting Versailles.