Cannes thief 'steals 40m euros of jewels' from hotel

An armed man has stolen jewels worth about 40m euros ($53m, £34m) in the French Riviera resort of Cannes, officials say.

They say the hold-up took place on Sunday morning at a jewellery exhibition at the Carlton Hotel, the hotel where Alfred Hitchcock filmed To Catch A Thief - his 1955 film about a jewel thief operating in the French Riviera.

The hotel is located on the Croisette promenade - one of the most prestigious locations in Cannes.

An exhibition of diamonds by the jeweller Leviev was being held in the lobby of the hotel, the BBC's Hugh Schofield reports.