Louvre Jewels Scandal 💎🤯: Truth Unmasked!

World News

No, the jewels stolen from the Louvre did not turn up at the home of an oligarch with close ties to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Pro-Russian social media users had been circulating claims, supported by a video purportedly produced by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU), that the stolen jewelry had been discovered there. However, NABU has definitively denied the claim, stating that the video was generated using artificial intelligence. This news followed the publication of a significant report on November 12th detailing a high-level corruption scandal within Ukraine’s energy sector, revealing that nearly $100 million had been disbursed as kickbacks. In response to these revelations, President Zelensky dismissed his minister of energy and his minister of justice, both of whom were implicated in the scandal. Subsequently, on November 18th, pro-Russia social media users began posting about further developments related to the corruption scandal, this time linking it to the bold, broad daylight theft of crown jewels from the Louvre Museum in Paris, which occurred during the heist in October.

Thieves stole eight pieces of jewelry, including an emerald necklace once belonging to French Empress Marie-Louise. A video, falsely attributed to NABU, circulated on social media, claiming that some of the jewelry stolen from the Louvre was discovered at Mindich’s home. The video shows the necklace positioned next to a stack of bills, purportedly Mindich’s. The video garnered at least 1.2 million views on X. Contrary to claims made by pro-Russian social media users on November 18, 2025, NABU did not discover the jewelry stolen from the Louvre at Mindich’s residence. While the corruption scandal involving Mindich is confirmed, NABU definitively did not find any of the stolen Louvre jewels at his home. Furthermore, the image of the necklace featured in the shared video was almost certainly generated by artificial intelligence. The image at left depicts the necklace found within the fabricated video, while the necklace at right represents the genuine piece owned by Empress Marie-Louise, which was stolen from the Louvre. NABU has explicitly denied that the jewelry was discovered at Zelensky’s friend’s house, clarifying that the image originated from AI-generated content.

Media users have alleged that jewelry stolen from the Louvre in October was discovered at the home of a friend of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Supporting this claim, they presented a video purportedly produced by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU). However, NABU has refuted this claim, stating that the jewelry showcased in the shared video was artificially generated using AI. The Bureau did not locate the stolen Louvre jewelry at the friend’s residence. Specifically, the image of the necklace appearing in the video, widely circulated by pro-Russian social media accounts, was almost certainly created through artificial intelligence. At left is the genuine necklace, which belonged to Empress Marie-Louise and was stolen from the Louvre. At right is the real necklace. Notably, the real necklace features a pattern of square and round emeralds, along with teardrop-shaped emeralds hanging downwards, and emeralds ringed with five diamond petals. Conversely, the fake necklace is limited to round emeralds and only displays four diamond petals. Our team contacted NABU, who confirmed their agency's denial of the discovery and the use of AI to generate the images.

Investigations by German authorities, NABU, did not locate the Empress Marie-Louise’s jewels, stolen from the Louvre during the investigation into Mindich. These revelations followed claims, made on November 18, 2025, that nearly $100 million had been paid out as kickbacks. In the ensuing fallout, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky dismissed his minister of energy and his minister of justice. The central figure implicated in the scheme is Timur Mindich, a film producer and, significantly, Zelensky’s former friend and business partner. The case was further linked to the audacious daylight theft of crown jewels from the Louvre Museum in Paris, which occurred in October and resulted in the theft of eight pieces of jewelry. A video circulating online, purportedly showing some of the stolen jewelry discovered at Mindich’s home, included an emerald necklace once belonging to the French Empress Marie-Louise, alongside a stack of bills. The video, viewed by at least 1.2 million users on X, has been widely disputed. Contrary to claims made by a pro-Russian social media user, NABU did not find any jewels from the Louvre heist at Mindich’s residence. Analysis suggests that the image of the necklace featured in the video was likely generated by artificial intelligence.

The photograph circulating on pro-Russian social media depicts a necklace, but a close examination reveals significant differences from the genuine article. To the right is the real necklace belonging to Empress Marie-Louise, which was stolen from the Louvre. In contrast, the necklace featured in the video possesses only round emeralds, lacking the pattern of square and round emeralds characteristic of the original. Furthermore, the real necklace incorporates teardrop-shaped emeralds that hang downward, while these were absent in the video’s depiction. The real necklace also features emeralds ringed with five diamond petals, a detail missing from the video’s version, which is limited to just four petals. AI continues to struggle with replicating the nuanced specifics of an object. Our team subsequently contacted NABU, who confirmed that its investigators did not locate the Empress Marie-Louise’s jewels during the investigation into Mindich. Although the corruption scandal involving Mindich is confirmed to be genuine, NABU’s findings indicated that no jewels from the Louvre heist were discovered at his residence. The image of the necklace presented in the video was almost certainly generated by artificial intelligence. To the left is the necklace that appears in the fake video. To the right is the real necklace that belonged to Empress Marie-Louise, which was stolen from the Louvre. © 2004 GrandPalaisRmn (musée du Louvre) / Jean-Gilles Berizzi

In reality, the necklace belonged to Empress Marie-Louise. The genuine piece features a pattern of square and round emeralds, alongside teardrop-shaped emeralds that hang downwards, while the replica lacks these teardrop stones. Furthermore, the authentic necklace incorporates emeralds encircled by five diamond petals, a detail absent from the video reproduction, which only displays four petals. AI continues to struggle with accurately replicating the precise nuances of an object’s appearance. Our team subsequently contacted NABU, who affirmed that their investigators had not located the Empress Marie-Louise’s jewels, stolen from the Louvre during the investigation into Mindich. The video initially appeared to be produced by NABU, as its logo was prominently displayed throughout the fabricated report. However, NABU vehemently denied any involvement when contacted by our team. While definitively tracing the video’s origins remains challenging, it was subsequently shared on the site Pravda FR. French government agency Viginum, responsible for combating “digital interference,” reported that Pravda FR is a member of the Russian disinformation network Portal Kombat. This tactic – impersonating a media outlet or official organization – is also characteristic of Operation Matryoshka, a disinformation campaign orchestrated by the Kremlin. Following this, France’s top general came under fire after stating the country must be “prepared to lose children.”