A group of thieves have stolen a handbag containing €5m worth of Chanel jewels from a woman on the road between Paris and Charles De Gaulle airport.

The daring robbery of the Taiwanese art collector happened on Wednesday as the taxi she was travelling in was driving through a long tunnel notorious for robbery attacks on tourists stuck in traffic.

The thieves smashed the car window and snatched the bag.

It is not known at this stage whether or not the thieves were just lucky or knew in advance that there were valuable objects in the bag, including a ring said to be worth €1.7m.

Police say they are keeping an open mind as they investigate the theft of the gems which were to be presented at the Paris Museum of Modern Art, a source said.

"Either it was an order or they are in the s***," the source said, adding it would be very difficult to sell the items without good contacts because of their exceptional qualities.

The 1.3km (1,400-yard) Landy tunnel is used mostly by people travelling between Paris and the airport.

Local thieves are most often the culprits.

The police source said: "It is often local delinquency. They aren't afraid of anything, know the area and escape through emergency exits."

Christina Chernovetska, the daughter of the then mayor of Kiev, was a victim of a similar robbery in February 2010 when a bag which she said held jewels worth €4.5m was stolen from her.

Even royalty is not immune.

Saudi prince Abdul Aziz Bin Fahd, the multi-millionaire son of the late King Fahd, was the victim of a spectacular armed raid on his convoy last August in which €250,000 and diplomatic papers were stolen.

The robbery comes two weeks after a raid over the Easter weekend in London's Hatton Garden where thieves stole dozens of safety deposit boxes containing what is believed to be tens of millions of pounds' worth of gems and valuables.