Empty display cases in the window of the Kronometry watch shop are seen after the robbery.


AFP/Cannes

The French Riviera resort of Cannes was once again the scene of a hold-up yesterday, just three days after a man robbed an upmarket hotel in one of the world’s biggest jewellery heists.
Two men armed with a grenade and gun burst into a store selling luxury watches and made off with around 40 items, just a couple of blocks away from the Carlton hotel – the scene of a record $136mn (103mn euro) robbery on Sunday.
The glamorous Mediterranean resort has fallen prey to thieves several times this year, notably during the film festival in May, which attracted a glittering array of celebrities from the movie world.
The value of yesterday’s theft at the Kronometry store, which took place at 11am (0900 GMT), is not yet known, a close to the investigation told AFP.
The shop is one of many luxury stores on the posh beachfront Croisette avenue, and sits opposite the building where the famed Cannes film festival is held every year.
According to the source, one man walked into the shop holding a grenade and the other followed with a gun.
They threatened the manager and three sales people, telling them to open cabinets, took some 40 watches before escaping, without using their weapons.
The store had already been the victim of a 1mn-euro heist in February, when robbers made away with some 150 watches.
Sunday’s theft at the Carlton – one of the biggest jewellery heists ever recorded worldwide – stunned police and media with its simplicity.
An armed man just walked into the hotel, which is popular with the rich and famous, and was once the location of Alfred Hitchcock’s thriller To Catch A Thief.
He made off on foot with earrings, pendants and other jewellery from the so-called “Extraordinary Diamonds” show, put on by a group owned by Israeli billionaire Lev Leviev.
The show was being held in a wing of the hotel that had direct access to the street.
Authorities, workers and unions have since questioned security at the famed Carlton hotel, where managers have been accused of being “a little careless”.
Police were not notified that the exhibition was taking place, which while not a legal requirement, is normally standard practice for luxury establishments like the Carlton.
Sunday’s heist comes head-to-head with what is considered the world’s largest ever haul of jewellery – valued at around 100mn euros – which took place in Belgium in 2003.
It is also France’s biggest jewellery theft.
But this is not the first time that Cannes has been the victim of spectacular robberies.
In a pre-dawn heist at a hotel during the film festival in May, thieves stole jewellery worth $1.4mn due to be loaned to movie stars.
That robbery took place in the hotel room of an American employee of Swiss jeweller Chopard while she was out for the evening, police said.
In a scene straight from a Hollywood film, a strongbox containing jewels was ripped out of the wardrobe and carried off, they said.
In a second theft during the festival, robbers made off with a diamond necklace with an estimated value of $1.9mn.
At least two apartments rented by film executives were also burgled during the 2013 festival, with thieves taking cash, jewellery and other personal items.