PARIS (AP) — Kim Kardashian thought she was going to be raped and killed when criminals broke into her bedroom in central Paris, tied her up and stole more than $6 million in jewelry.
More than eight years later, 10 people will go on trial in Paris over the robbery, abduction and kidnapping of the media personality and the concierge of the residence where she was staying during Paris Fashion Week the night of Oct. 2, 2016.
Kardashian’s lawyers said she will testify in person at the trial starting Monday and scheduled to run through May 23.
“Ms. Kardashian is reserving her testimony for the court and jury and does not wish to elaborate further at this time,” they said. “She has great respect and admiration for the French justice system and has been treated with great respect by the French authorities. She wishes the trial to proceed in an orderly fashion, in accordance with French law and with respect for all parties to the case."
In interviews and on her family’s reality TV show, Kardashian has described being terrified as robbers pointed a gun at her.
In a 2020 appearance on David Letterman’s Netflix show, she tearfully recalled thinking: “This is the time I’m going to get raped. I’m like, ‘What is happening? Are we gonna die? Just tell them I have children. I have babies, I have a husband, I have a family.’ ”
Twelve people were originally expected in the defendants’ box. One of them has died and another is seriously ill and can't be tried. According to the investigation, five of the 10 defendants were present at the scene of the robbery.
The Granddad Robbers
The French press has dubbed them The Granddad Robbers because the main defendants are elderly and have careers as bank robbers with long criminal records.
Kardashian told investigators she was taken to a bathroom next to her bedroom and placed in the bathtub. Her attackers fled on bicycles or on foot and she managed to free herself by removing the tape from her hands and mouth.
She had also removed the tape from her feet and rushed to her stylist’s room. She called her sister Kourtney to tell her about the theft. Shortly afterward, Kardashian told investigators that she had not been injured. She filed a complaint, adding that she wanted to leave France as soon as possible to be reunited with her children.
According to her testimony and that of the concierge, at least one of the suspects had a handgun, with which he threatened the victims.
Jewelry worth millions of dollars
The gangsters stole many pieces of jewelry, including a ring of great value, estimated to be worth more than $6 million. Only one piece of jewelry — a diamond cross on platinum that was lost during the suspects' escape — has been recovered.
Two of the accused have partially confessed to the crime, as their DNA was found at the crime scene.
The alleged ringleader, 68-year-old Aomar Aït Khedache, is one of two suspected robbers who allegedly entered the apartment. Nicknamed “Old Omar,” his genetic profile was found on the tape used to gag Kardashian.
He left the hotel on a bicycle, as did two other robbers, then met his son, who was waiting for him in a parked car at a nearby train station.
The second robber said he tied up the concierge with cables but did not go up to Kardashian’s apartment. Yunice Abbas, 71, said he acted as a lookout in the ground floor reception area, making sure the escape route was clear. He said he was unarmed and did not personally threaten Kardashian, but admitted he shared responsibility for the crime.
Abbas was arrested in January 2017 and spent 21 months in prison before being released under judicial supervision. In 2021, he co-authored a French-language book titled “I Sequestered Kim Kardashian.”
Didier Dubreucq, 69, known as “Blue Eyes,” is the second alleged robber suspected of entering the flat. He denies any involvement although he was filmed by CCTV cameras and numerous telephone contacts with the other co-defendants show his involvement, according to the investigation.
The other defendants are suspected of providing information about Kardashian’s presence in the apartment. Others are accused of playing a role in the resale of the jewelry in Antwerp, Belgium.
Nicolas Vaux-montagny, The Associated Press
