Pink Panther Arrest: Suspect Linked to Infamous Gang Arrested in France
French police have arrested one of three Pink Panther gang members guilty of jewelry heists worth over $400 million.
The name of the suspect has not yet been identified, but is an alleged member of the infamous, international jewel thief network- the Pink Panthers. Three Pink Panther gang members escaped from a Swiss prison earlier this year.
The suspect was arrested on Monday in in the town of Bedarrides, under an international arrest warrant issued by prosecutors in Lausanne, Switzerland. Charges listed on the warrant include: armed robbery, drug trafficking and a prison escape according to the Associated Press.
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The Pink Panthers are an organized crime unit that has existed since the 1990's. The group has the reputation of committing some of the most elaborate heists in history, worth a total of $436 million according to the AP.
In 2009, three other members believed to be associated with the gang were arrested outside the Monte Carlo Casino in Monaco at broad daylight.
"It was broad daylight when their vehicle pulled up in Casino Square late in the morning," a source told the Telegraph in a 2009 interview. The names of the men were not released although again, they were believed to be members of the Pink Panther gang.
"They were hard-looking men, but very well dressed in designer casual wear and sunglasses," the source told the publication. "The square is full of jewelry shops, and it appeared that the men were planning an armed raid."
One of the men arrested was believed to be Dragan Mikic, 33, the lead member of the gang.
A year before that incident, at a court in Chambéry, southeastern France, three Serb members of the Pink Panthers were found guilty of robberies in Biarritz, Cannes, Courchevel and Saint-Tropez.
Boban Stojkovic, 35, and Goran Drazic, 35, were respectively handed down six-year and ten-year sentences.
