Hotel Says $800K Ring Was in Vacuum Cleaner Bag

What appeared to be another high-profile theft at the Ritz Paris had a more innocent explanation, the hotel says. Police launched an investigation Friday after a Malaysian businesswoman said a diamond ring worth around $800,000 had vanished from her bedside table while she was out shopping, the Guardian reports. The hotel said Sunday that the ring had been found in a vacuum cleaner bag. "Thanks to the careful search work of security agents, the ring was found this morning," the hotel said. "Our client is happy with this news." The hotel said that the woman plans to return Paris from London to claim the ring and that she has been offered a free three-night stay.

In her complaint to police, the woman said she suspected hotel staff of stealing the ring. The investigation was handled by the "banditry suppression brigade," and the public prosecutor will now decide whether the case should be closed, Le Parisien reports. Thieves have targeted the hotel on other occasions, reports the BBC. In 2018, armed robbers stole jewels worth more than $5 million from a hotel boutique. Months later, a Saudi princess said jewels worth more than $800,000 had been stolen from her suite at the hotel. (More Paris stories.)