Articles and News

Frédérique Constant Names Inès Sastre as Female Charity Ambassador

Geneva, Switzerland--Frédérique Constant announces that supermodel, actress, and UNICEF representative Inès Sastre will be the brand’s female charity ambassador for the next two years. In particular, she will play a major role in Frédérique Constant’s support of the World Heart Federation.

Involved in heart related charities since 2009, Frédérique Constant is honored to be supporting the “Hearts of Children” campaign. This collaboration will include the launch of the “Ladies World Heart Federation” collection of 100 watches, in addition to the US$50,000 the watchmaker donated in September 2012 during World Heart Day in Los Angeles. The watches will be produced and donated to the World Heart Federation member organizations to support their actions aimed at preventing cardiovascular diseases (CVD) in women and children around the world.

The “Ladies World Heart Federation” Automatic Collection is a series of four unique models, inspired by the FC-310 automatic winding movement that offers accuracy, reliability and durability, a 38-hour power reserve, and water resistance to 60 meters. 

The timepieces feature a silver dial and the Double Heart Beat aperture at the 12 o’clock position. A sapphire crystal see-through case back shows a rose gold plated rotor engraved with the World Heart Federation logo, a special “Hearts of Children” decoration, and sunray bridges. The 34mm case and dial have eight VS diamond indexes, and the outer ring is finished in mother of pearl. Each is presented in a specially designed, heart-shaped World Heart Federation gift box. There are two stainless steel models and two rose gold models in the collection.

Frédérique Constant is proud to support the World Heart Federation in its fight against cardiovascular disease (CVD), which includes heart disease and stroke, the world’s number one killer. The partnership is a joint commitment to raise global awareness, focusing on women and children as the most vulnerable populations. 

Ad campaign featuring supermodel and UN representative Ines Sastre.

Belgian Airport Diamond Heist An Inside Job, Say Experts

Brussels, Belgium—Bold as brass, they were. On Monday, two vans carrying eight men dressed as policemen and bearing machine guns drove through a perimeter fence surrounding the airport here, approached a Brinks armored vehicle, and lifted 120 parcels of rough and polished diamonds being loaded onto a Swiss International Airlines passenger flight bound for Zurich, Switzerland. The Antwerp World Diamond Centre estimates the value of the theft at about $50 million, but some reports say it could be more than $460 million, says National Jeweler--but the thieves dropped a few, later recovered.

No shots were fired and nobody was injured, despite the fact that the pilot and airport employees were outside the plane making last-minute inspections. But many believe the job was too well orchestrated and professional to be just random. Indeed, this report in JCK says certain elements of the crime, including police-like vehicles used by the robbers, and the way the disguised robbers were able to wave away airport security, point to the likelihood that the robbers had at least some inside information. The pilot and other employees were told to back off during the robbery, but they were unharmed.

The New York Times reported the robbers also knew exactly when to strike—just 18 minutes before the flight was scheduled to take off. Normal baggage and passengers had already been loaded, and the costly cargo was the last thing being put on the plane, flight LX789, before it readied for takeoff to Zurich.

Doron Levy, an airport security expert for French firm Ofek, told the Times he’s certain it was an inside job. While it had some hallmarks of the long series of high-end jewelry robberies dubbed “Pink Panther” after the movie, this was even more sophisticated, he said.

A report from Reuters said passengers on the plane had no idea what was going on, learning of the theft only after they’d been told to debark and their flight cancelled. Brinks, meanwhile, has notified all clients whose stones were stolen.