MarketWatch

How Jewelers Can Avoid Buying Stolen Jewelry

https://www.morningstar.com/news/marketwatch/2025102155/heres-how-the-louvre-heist-gems-could-end-up-being-sold-at-your-local-jeweler

https://www.marketwatch.com/story/where-could-the-louvre-heist-gems-turn-up-the-black-market-is-the-mainstream-market-for-most-stolen-jewelry-fd185662?gaa_at=eafs&gaa_n=AWEtsqdtYCP2rsKRHda_3NLz_r4m0OwZ_zr-_OTLXf8rkbtfQnlflvqHozu7Vwgf5wo%3D&gaa_ts=6925e630&gaa_sig=tmqXbd0kPeI6Q00FHDJUnQYPYfbjo-_dQnNMDmymzxThDc_X4pVWKba1sk5tCGoiR32PW-FGiVV1Y5YlXsuXyg%3D%3D

Quotes submitted: 

"The pieces stolen from the Louvre obviously have massive historical and intrinsic value that would not be able to be fetched on ANY market. However, dismantling the piece and removing the stones would make for the easiest way to sell some of these pieces.

Take the sapphire tiara and necklace worn by numerous historical figures including Queen Marie-Amelie, for example, just those massive sapphires would command a value of tens, maybe even hundreds of thousands of dollars depending on the quality. Same with those beautiful emeralds on Marie-Louie's necklace and, to a lesser extent, those pearls on Empress Eugenie’s Pearl Tiara.

I can't speak to how black market buyers and sellers behave but if you were to remove all the stones and bring them to a 47th street shop in NYC's Diamond District, most potential buyers would kick you out of their store given the nature of these massive stones and the newsworthy story going around. The thousands of smaller diamonds adorning these pieces, however, would sell pretty easily, albeit at lower market value than they are worth. After removing the stones, the gold could be sold and melted at any scrap buyer and passed off as old relics, which is a very normal practice at a refinery/gold buyer. My guess is that these pieces are either going to get parted out slowly over time, or they’re going directly to a bad-actor’s private collection.

Selling something that has actual value but less publicity is not hard. If a crook steals a legit diamond engagement ring, a gold buyer will pay big bucks for it. However, if it doesn't have the original paperwork, like a GIA certification, the buyer will pay MUCH less than its actual worth just in case it is stolen, or more likely a divorcee trying to cash in! Also, many reputable buyers will have customers sign an affidavit if the value of the piece exceeds a certain threshold, stating that it's not stolen, alleviating any liability.

Thinking as a gold buyer, myself, if the purchase price exceeds $1,000, I would always recommend having your customer sign something so that if it indeed ends up being stolen and the cops show up at your door, you have a paper trail showing you did your due diligence and are not liable.”

Questions to Answer:

• The recent Louvre Heist raised concerns of where those jewels might be going

• What risks to jewelry buyers, pawnshops, and professional jewelry stores face when buying high-value pieces from walk-ins?

• If a piece ends up being determined as stolen, who foots the bill? 

• What are steps buyers can take to avoid buying risky jewelry?

• Is stolen jewelry a major concern in the industry?

Takeaways from Ian’s Perspectives: 

1. Some pieces are so valuable that it’s difficult to put a price tag on them, which makes selling them difficult. A great example of this would be the historical pieces stolen from the Louvre. 

2. Dismantling the pieces and selling the stones and metal separately is the more likely avenue that the thieves would’ve taken. 

3. Taking stolen gems and jewelry to reputable stores is unlikely to go well for the seller/thief, which means offloading stolen jewelry, especially jewelry that’s high profile, can be quite difficult.