Hollywood star George Clooney is 'proud' of the thieves for the jewel heist at the Louvre in Paris: 'If you're a professional thief like I am...'

Hollywood star George Clooney is the actor we all saw in the heist drama Ocean’s Eleven. This is a film that talks about a few oddballs coming together and pulling off the greatest heist of the century on celluloid. But since art imitates life and life imitates art, the jewel heist at the Louvre in Paris is making all the noise across the globe.

And George Clooney has an amusing reaction to it as the veteran spoke to Variety about it recently. The actor was ‘proud’ of the thieves as he said in his inimitable avatar. “We should rob the Louvre, but somebody’s already done it. Maybe we’ll rob Adam Sandler instead, he’s got some crown jewels, I know he does,” Clooney remarked.

The actor also quipped, “If you’re a professional thief like I am, I was very proud of those guys.”

A timeline of the jewel heist at the Louvre in Paris

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Oct. 10

Thieves use a false pretext to steal a basket lift. Paris prosecutor Laurence Beccuau said they made an appointment with the company that owned the truck before leaving with it, using threats but no violence. The company filed a complaint for the theft in the town of Louvres, about 20 kilometers (12 miles) north of Paris. The name has made many wonder whether it was a coincidence.

Oct. 19

9 a.m.: The Louvre museum opens to visitors.

9:30 a.m.: Thieves dressed like renovation workers park the truck equipped with a freight lift — a common sight in Paris — on the sidewalk at the foot of the Louvre, on Quai François Mitterrand alongside the Seine River. They put traffic cones around the truck to simulate a maintenance operation. Two people climb a ladder to reach a balcony and gain entry through a window.

9:34 a.m.: The two thieves enter the south end of the Apollo Gallery. An alarm is triggered at the security control room. A staff member in the room makes a radio call to command center members to alert them to the intruders.

9:35 a.m.: Robbers use disc cutters to neatly cut the glass of two display cases and take the jewels. Security officers make visitors evacuate, in line with requirements that focus on crowd safety. The museum manager calls the nearby police station to report a theft in progress and asks for immediate help.

9:36 a.m.: A team leader at the command center activates a special button linked to Paris police headquarters.

9:37 a.m.: A message is sent to staff to request that all the museum’s doors be closed.

9:38 a.m.: The thieves leave via the same window and flee eastward with two other people waiting for them on two scooters. They leave behind a yellow jacket similar to those often worn by construction workers and other equipment, including a disc cutter. Culture Minister Rachida Dati said that security officers on site prevented one thief from setting fire to the truck with the freight lift.

Oct. 22

The museum reopens. Beccuau, the prosecutor, says that about 100 investigators are working on the case, in addition to forensics experts who are analyzing surveillance footage and 150 samples taken from the basket lift, inside the museum and on items found.

Oct. 26

Beccuau says that investigators made arrests on Saturday evening, adding that one of the men taken into custody was preparing to leave the country from Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport. Beccuau does not say whether any jewels have been recovered. She adds that investigators from a special police unit in charge of armed robberies, serious burglaries and art thefts made the arrests

With added inputs from agencies