A silver steward working at the Élysée Palace in Paris has been arrested for stealing silverware and porcelain. Investigators caught him along with two accomplices last week. They are accused of taking items from the official home of the French president and trying to sell them online on websites like Vinted. The head steward at the palace noticed that some objects were missing and reported it to the police. Some of these objects are national heritage items and their total value is about €40,000 (£35,000). Most pieces came from the famous Sèvres Manufactory, a porcelain factory owned by France since 1759. The police started questioning Élysée staff after workers at the factory saw some of the stolen items being sold online. This case follows several recent robberies in French museums like the Louvre, raising concerns about poor security in important cultural places. The silver steward’s job was to store and look after tableware used by presidents and visiting dignitaries. Prosecutors said the steward’s inventory records showed he might have been planning more thefts. The arrested man’s Vinted online account included a plate stamped "French Air Force" and ashtrays marked "Sèvres Manufactory," which are not normally sold to the public. Police found about 100 objects at the steward’s home, car, and personal locker. These included Sèvres porcelain, a René Lalique statuette, Baccarat champagne coupes, and copper saucepans. The steward and his two alleged partners appeared in court on 18 December. Their trial is set for 26 February. They have been banned from contacting each other, attending auction venues, and continuing their jobs. The recovered items were returned to the Élysée Palace. This is better news than the situation at the Louvre. The Louvre is still missing crown jewels worth around €88 million (£77 million) after a daylight robbery in October. Four suspects have been arrested there. Other recent thefts in France include gold nuggets stolen from Paris’s Natural History Museum and Chinese porcelain taken from a porcelain museum in Limoges. In October, about 2,000 gold and silver coins worth €90,000 (£78,000) were stolen from a museum in Langres dedicated to philosopher Denis Diderot.