Paris court convicts Élysée’s former silverware keeper-turned-porcelain thief

PARIS (CN) — On Thursday, Thomas M. — the silverware keeper in charge of the presidential Élysée Palace’s inventory from 2020-2025 — was found guilty of aggravated theft after investigators discovered he had been slipping china and other tableware into his bag and listing the pieces for sale online.

“The court considered the grave facts … the number of pieces stolen, their value and historical value, and the position of Thomas M., who was the silverware keeper of the Élysée for five years and had the trust of his employer,” the head judge explained in a monotone voice.

Thomas M. was handed a 24-month prison sentence — 12 months to be served with an electronic bracelet and the rest suspended — and ordered to pay a roughly $12,000 fine. He will also be banned from entering the presidential residence for three years, and barred from working as a silverware keeper or attending luxury goods auctions for life.

The story dates back to 2023, when Thomas M. began sneaking precious tableware pieces out of the palace. As the man in charge of the inventories, he also had the power to falsify them — and this allowed the scheme to go unnoticed for two years before the Élysée started to become suspicious.

The Manufacture Nationale de Sèvres — the prestigious ceramics house that has supplied French leaders with tableware since the reign of Louis XV — also raised alarm bells when it saw some of its pieces available for sale on sites like Facebook and Vinted, prompting an investigation.

Thomas M. didn’t act alone. During the trial on Feb. 26, he explained how he and his partner — Damien C., an antiques dealer and co-defendant — were facing mounting financial troubles, with unpaid electricity bills running into the thousands. While the theft was initially motivated by a general appreciation for the porcelain’s beauty, it turned into a way for the couple to pull themselves out of debt.

Damien C. was found guilty of aggravated theft and sentenced to 24 months in prison, eight to be served with an electronic bracelet and the remaining 16 suspended. He was also ordered to pay a roughly $12,000 fine, and will be indefinitely banned from attending luxury goods auctions.

“The court noted his important role as an intermediary between Thomas M. and Ghislain M., who was the buyer and collector and sought out these pieces,” the head judge announced to the courtroom.

Thomas M. and Damien C. were not present on Thursday. But Ghislain M., the 30-year-old collector who bought their pieces, stood motionless at the stand with his hands folded in front of him. He was wearing a gray suit, pink tie and untied white scarf. Before the hearing began, his legs were crossed as his foot bounced up and down.

During the trial on Feb. 26, Thomas M. and Damien C. spoke coolly to the court. Damien C.’s statements were short and concise, with constant shrugs and scoffs. The pair did not become emotional — there were no tears, no pleas, no apologies.

Ghislain M.’s case was different. As the story unraveled, it became clear that porcelain was more than his hobby — he constructed his life to facilitate a passion for collecting special items. At the time, he was working as a gallery attendant at the Louvre for roughly $2,000 per month; after putting aside $750 for living expenses, the rest went to his collection.

After the story came out, he lost his job at the prestigious museum. During the trial, the judge asked him how he was doing psychologically, prompting him to break down in tears and answer in a trembling voice.

“I’ll do everything possible to repair my errors,” he said, exhaling deeply. “I want to move on, but correctly.”

At first, he said he didn’t know the pieces he bought had been stolen. In 2024, Damien C. found him on a Facebook group dedicated to lovers of tableware. They had breakfast in Versailles, where he fabricated a story about how the pieces came into his possession.

“I told him that I had a grandfather who died,” Damien C. told the courtroom during the trial. “[And he] used to work at the Élysée and take things from there.”

Ghislain M. bought dozens of pieces from the couple, with no intention of selling them; he kept them in a case in his bedroom, carefully wrapped, so he could admire them. He said while he believed Damien C.’s story at first, he eventually suspected the pieces were stolen — but his passion ultimately outweighed reason, and he turned a blind eye to his doubts.

“Passion is by definition unreasonable, and we know it,” his lawyer, Xavier Autain, told the courtroom during the trial. “He didn’t know, he didn’t want to know.”

The Sèvres manufacturer said the dozens of pieces were worth roughly $400,000. However, this was a point of contention; since Ghislain M. bought them for about $17,000, Autain argued this was their realistic market value. The figures were made more complicated by Sèvres’ stance as both a plaintiff and expert in the case, which raised ethical questions about objectivity during the trial.

Ghislain M. was given a 12-month sentence, fully suspended, for buying stolen artifacts. For three years, he will also be forbidden from contacting the other two defendants and attending luxury goods actions. He will also have to give back the dozens of items that he bought.

After reading the verdict, the judge asked if there was anything he would like to say.

“I understand your decision completely, and would like to thank you for being just,” he said.

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