France hit by second major heist as thieves target gold refinery

Six suspects have been arrested near the French city of Lyon in connection with the country's latest brazen heist.

Thieves used explosives to break into a precious metals refinery on Thursday before making off with the loot, which was mostly gold and worth €12m (£10.5m, $13.8m).

Following a chase, police caught the suspects and recovered the haul, officials said.

The heist came after five more people were arrested over a theft at the Louvre Museum in Paris earlier this month.

In the Lyon incident, footage posted on social media by people living near the facility showed two men near a white van. One could be seen placing a ladder over the company's fence before scaling it.

Another video showed a robber carrying a weapon and opening the rear door of the van, while another loaded briefcases into the vehicle.

An unnamed neighbour told AFP news agency she heard a big explosion. "It was really impressive," she said.

Five employees of the firm Pourquery Laboratories suffered minor injuries in the explosion, officials told AFP.

A woman was among those detained after the chase. Assault rifles and explosives were also seized, police said.

Meanwhile, the latest arrests over the Louvre heist in Paris bring the number of those detained to seven.

On 19 October, four suspects used a mechanical lift to gain access to the museum's Gallery of Apollo in broad daylight.

They cracked open display cases housing crown jewels with a disc cutter and made off with items worth €88m (£76m; $102m).

Police say those arrested include three of the thieves. Officers are still hunting the fourth.