PARIS (AP) — It was shortly after the stunning heist of the crown jewels at the Louvre when Paris-based Associated Press photographer Thibault Camus caught in his frame a dapperly dressed young man walking by uniformed French police officers, their car blocking one of the museum gates.
Instinctively, he took the shot.
It wasn't a particularly great photo, with someone's shoulder obscuring part of the foreground, Camus told himself.
But it did the job — showing French police sealing off the world's most-visited museum after the brazen daylight robbery last Sunday.
Plus, Camus figured, the guy walking past the officers was unusually well dressed, in a coat, a jacket and tie and wearing a fedora, adding a touch of Paris couture to the scene.
And so off went the photo to AP's worldwide audiences.
From there, fertile imaginations sprung into high gear — whipping up an online buzz.
Posts on social media declared the well-dressed man to be a French detective — if you will, a more dashing version of the famed Inspector Clouseau from “Pink Panther” movies — even though AP's photo caption had not identified him.
It simply read: “Police officers block an access to the Louvre museum after a robbery Sunday, Oct. 19, 2025, in Paris.”
A post on X that now has 5.6 million views says: “Actual shot (not AI!) of a French detective working the case of the French Crown Jewels that were stolen from the Louvre."
Another poster — with 1.2 million followers — claimed the man “who looks like he came out of a detective film noir from the 1940s is an actual French police detective who’s investigating the theft."
Camus says nothing he saw led him to that conclusion — the man was just someone who streamed away from the Louvre as authorities evacuated the area, Camus says.
“He appeared in front of me, I saw him, I took the photo,” Camus says. “He passed by and left.”
If the unidentified man really is one of the more than 100 investigators hunting for the jewel thieves, the authorities are keeping it very hush-hush.
“We’d rather keep the mystery alive ;)” the Paris prosecutor’s office said with a wink in an email response to AP questions.
Police officers block an access to the Louvre museum after a robbery Sunday, Oct. 19, 2025, in Paris. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)
TORONTO (AP) — Schools were closed in Canada's largest city of Toronto and commuters faced severe delays on Thursday as heavy snow continued to hammer much of southern Ontario, blocking streets and forcing cars into ditches.
Environment Canada said regions including the Greater Toronto Area, Kitchener and Hamilton are expected to see up to 30 centimeters (12 inches) of snow into Thursday afternoon.
Toronto, York, Peel and Halton Region schools closed Thursday morning, and institutions including the University of Toronto, Toronto Metropolitan University and York University announced their campuses were closed.
Complete school closures due to snow are rare in Toronto.
Environment Canada said the Ottawa area will see up to 25 centimeters (10 inches) of snow, tapering off Thursday evening. It added that northerly wind gusts of up to 60 kilometers (37 milies) per hour will result in blowing snow and reduced visibility, and a sharp temperature drop will cause very cold wind chills.
Provincial police advised residents to stay off the roads if possible, and officers responded to dozens of collisions and cars in ditches. Police said there were multiple road closures across southern Ontario, including ramps at the Highway 403 near the Burlington and Hamilton border and parts of Highway 401 in eastern Ontario.
Both Ontario Premier Doug Ford and Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow cancelled public events Thursday due to the inclement weather.
At Toronto’s Pearson airport, officials said air traffic management procedures were in place and impacting some arriving and departing flights.
Travellers were advised to check their flight status before heading to the airport, where snow clearing operations were underway.
Pedestrians cross Bay Street along Front Street amid heavy snowfall and accumulation as snow and heavy winds continue to hammer the Greater Toronto Area, in Toronto, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (Giordano Ciampini /The Canadian Press via AP)
Pedestrians, obscured by snow thrown by workers cleaning a work site overhead, cross Adelaide Street along Yonge Street amid heavy snowfall and accumulation as snow and heavy winds continue to hammer the Greater Toronto Area, in Toronto, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (Giordano Ciampini /The Canadian Press via AP)
Pedestrians cross Adelaide Street along Yonge Street amid heavy snowfall and accumulation as snow and heavy winds continue to hammer the Greater Toronto Area, in Toronto, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (Giordano Ciampini /The Canadian Press via AP)
A cargo cyclist rides along Adelaide Street East amid heavy snowfall and accumulation as snow and heavy winds continue to hammer the Greater Toronto Area, in Toronto, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (Giordano Ciampini /The Canadian Press via AP)
Commuters make their way to their destinations on King Street East amid heavy snowfall and accumulation as snow and heavy winds continue to hammer the Greater Toronto Area, in Toronto, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (Giordano Ciampini /The Canadian Press via AP)
