Earlier this week, French police detained two men trying to steal blocks of stone at the site of restoration work in Notre-Dame de Paris, reports Le Parisien.

The publication found that on March 17, two thieves, while intoxicated, climbed over a three-meter fence and entered the cathedral, which suffered from a fire last year. Restoration work there has now been suspended as part of the nationwide quarantine measures introduced in France due to coronavirus.

Men spotted by security officers guarding the cathedral. They called the police.

Investigators believe that thieves were going to steal several blocks of stone, then to sell them on the black market.

It was reported that a severe fire occurred in Notre Dame Cathedral in April last year. It began on scaffolding erected over the roof of the cathedral in connection with the restoration. The cathedral suffered significant damage: the spire of the building and the roof collapsed.