Eight men have been jailed over a double heist on the Harry Winston store in Paris that netted watches and jewels worth more than $100 million (around €90m).

The sentences ranged from nine months to the 15-year term given to the man believed to be the mastermind, Douadi Yahiaoui.

Prosecutor Sylvie Kachaner said 50-year-old Yahiaoui, who has already served 23 years for theft and drug trafficking, was the brains behind the outfit.

The first heist took place in October 2007, and involved four robbers disguised as decorators. Almost $35m worth of jewellery and watches were stolen.

BBC reports that in the second heist a year later around $79m worth of items were stolen, with three of the thieves dressed up as women.

Mouloud Djennad, one of those convicted, was a former security guard at Harry Winston. He told the court, "my thoughts are with my former colleagues at Harry Winston. I'm ashamed every day but I cannot undo what I've done."

Only a small amount of the stolen items have been recovered, with $19m worth of the stolen jewellery found in a drain in a Paris suburb in 2009.