Four armed and masked robbers forced their way into an Apple store in Paris and made off with Apple devices worth $1.3 million, while police were busy in areas popular with New Year revellers, CNN reported Wednesday.
Police said the robbers were "well informed" and had carefully chosen the time and place of their heist.
The robbers entered through a service entrance into the store, which had closed for the day, using violence to intimidate store employees, according to a spokeswoman for the Paris prosecutors office.
They then "calmly" went through boxes full of Apple products in the basement storeroom, seeking out iPhones, iPads and laptops, CNN said.
The robbery focused on the merchandise in the storeroom and left untouched the devices on display inside the store.
The robbers loaded the stolen goods into a Mercedes van parked nearby and sped off.
Published 02 January 2013, 15:35 IST