Two Algerian nationals who were found guilty by Monaco Criminal Court of a string of robberies at three top hotels have escaped jail time in the Principality, although in different ways.
The accomplice in the thefts was given a suspended jail sentence some time ago while the main culprit was absent serving a prison sentence elsewhere when the Court heard the case again recently.
The thefts from hotel rooms at the Fairmont, the Metropole and the Hermitage date back to the high summer of 2015, local French-language daily Monaco Matin reported.
The total value of the booty amounted to hundreds of thousands of euros and included two watches, each worth 150,000 euros and 20,000 in cash. In at least one case the criminals convinced the front desk they had mislaid their magnetic room keys and in another a maid allowed access to a room having been tricked into assuming the thief had every right to be there.
The more serious offender had 10 mentions on his French criminal record and one in Algeria. A warrant for his arrest has been issued.
FILE PHOTO: Hotel Hermitage
