Everything to know about Kim Kardashian's 2016 Paris jewelry heist and ensuing trial

It’s been nearly a decade since Kim Kardashian was robbed at gunpoint in her luxury Paris hotel.

In 2016, the reality star was tied and gagged as a group of thieves made away with millions worth of jewelry, an experience Kardashian 

Now, 10 suspects that prosecutors have linked to the incident are going to trial. Nine men and one woman will stand trial in Paris for the sensational robbery, and Kardashian herself is set to give in-person testimony on May 13.

Kardashian, 44, was physically unharmed in the incident, but she has opened up about how the experience “shook” her and changed her perspective on life, as she shared in a recent episode of 

Keep reading to learn more about the Paris robbery, and the details of the upcoming trial in Paris.

When did the robbery take place?Kardashian was robbed at the Hôtel de Pourtalès in Paris, France, in the early hours of Oct. 3, 2016. 

She had been in France for Paris Fashion Week and had just attended a Givenchy fashion show on Oct. 2. 

Five people dressed as police officers overpowered the hotel’s night watchman and accessed her room, a  at the time.

Kardashian was then bound and held at gunpoint by two masked men, according to 온라인카지노사이트 News. 

A spokesperson said Kardashian was left “badly shaken but physically unharmed” after the incident, according to 온라인카지노사이트 News.

What was stolen?

Thieves stole millions worth of jewelry from Kardashian, including the diamond engagement ring from her ex-husband, Ye, then known as Kanye West.

One of the robbers fell from his bike, dropping a bag. A single item was recovered by police. 

Who is standing trial for the robbery?

In January 2017, authorities arrested 14 men and three women across five French cities in connection with the robbery, according to .

Some of those suspects were subsequently released from suspicion. Suspect Marceau Baum-Gertner died before the trial at 72, and another suspect, Pierre Bouianere, 80, will be tried separately due to health reasons.

Ultimately, 10 suspects will stand trial in the upcoming court proceedings in Paris. The suspects have been nicknamed the “Grandpa Robbers” by the French media because many of them were men in their 60s and 70s.

The charges they face include kidnapping, armed robbery in an organized gang and unauthorized possession of weapons, according to information provided to reporters by the Paris Court of Appeal.

One of the suspects is Aomar Ait Khadache, who has denied allegations that he was the ringleader of the heist. 

Another suspect awaiting trial, Yunice Abbas, wrote about the heist in a 2021 tell-all book called “I Kidnapped Kim Kardashian.”

He was also candid about his role in the heist in a , detailing how he and his accomplices carried out the robbery.

“I went on the internet and it’s true, I saw her jewelry, I saw her ring, I saw that she showed it everywhere,” he said.

He admitted he and his team overpowered the concierge at Kardashian’s luxury hotel, and said that in the course of tying up the receptionist, he left DNA that linked him to the crime.

“As I already had a record, it was very easy to trace me,” he said.

He also said he had watched an episode of “Keeping Up With the Kardashians” in which the reality star throws a diamond into a swimming pool.

“I thought, ‘She’s got a lot of money. This lady doesn’t care at all,’” he told Vice.

He added that he did not feel any guilt about the incident. 

“Since she was throwing money away, I was there to collect it, and that was that. Guilty? No, I don’t care. I don’t care,” he said. 

Asked whether it had occurred to him that Kardashian could be “traumatized” by the robbery, Abbas said there was “no doubt.”

“Yes, of course. You don’t come out of it unscathed … of course, she must have been traumatized,” he said.

In an interview with  released in 2025, Abbas said, per a translation from 온라인카지노사이트 News, “I see her as a victim, nothing more. We had nothing against her personally. It’s just business. I’m sorry we scared that lady, because I can imagine it’s not easy for the victim. I really regret what happened.”

What has Kim Kardashian said about the heist?

Kardashian has opened up about the lasting trauma she experienced from the robbery.

She of the harrowing experience during a March 2017 episode of “Keeping Up With the Kardashians.”

“They asked for money,” Kardashian said in the episode. “I said I don’t have any money. They dragged me out to the hallway on top of the stairs. That’s when I saw the gun, like, clear as day.”

She said she had to decide in a “split second” what to do next.

“Am I going to run down the stairs and either be shot in the back or ...? It makes me so upset to even think about it,” she said through tears. “Either they’re gonna shoot me in the back, or if they don’t and I make it ... or if the elevator does not open in time or the stairs are locked, then like, I’m f----d.”

In a 2020 interview with David Letterman on his Netflix show,  she also said she feared one of the robbers would rape her. 

“He grabbed me and pulled me towards him, but I wasn’t wearing anything underneath so I was like, ‘OK, this is the time I’m going to get raped. Just deal. It’s going to happen. You know, just prepare yourself,’” she said.

“So I did ... but then he tied me up with handcuffs and then zip ties, and then duct tape, and then duct taped my mouth and my eyes,” she continued. “And before he had my eyes … I saw he found my whole jewelry box.”

The reality star has also opened up about how the experience changed her. 

“For a good year, I almost lost myself,” she said on in 2018, per E! News. “I was never depressed, but I wasn’t motivated to get up and work like I used to. It shook me.”

She added that ultimately, the attack gave her a new outlook on life and said she was “grateful” for the experience, even though it was “horrific.”

“There was a lot of me that measured who I was by how much I had. I thought, ‘Oh, I’m worth so much,’” she said. “That needed to change in me.”

Kardashian also said she grew more cautious about posting on social media following the incident, being sure not to reveal her live location in posts.

“If I want to video something, I’ll save it and post it when I leave,” she said.

During a 2023 episode of “The Kardashians,” she said he hadn’t bought new jewelry since the robbery.

What's going on with the trial?

Ten suspects will stand trial for the heist beginning April 28, 2025, in the Paris Court of Appeal.

The trial, which includes six main jurors, is expected to end with a verdict on May 23.

No photography will be permitted in court, according to information provided to the press by the Court of Appeal.

Kardashian confirmed through her lawyer, Michael Rhodes, that she will testify in person on May 13.

“We can confirm that Ms. Kardashian will be testifying in person at the upcoming French criminal trial involving the 2016 incident in which she was bound and robbed at gunpoint by a number of masked assailants,” Rhodes said in a statement obtained by 온라인카지노사이트 News.

“At this time, Ms. Kardashian is preserving her testimony for the Court and jury and does not wish to elaborate further on it at this stage,” the statement continued. “She has tremendous appreciation and admiration for the French judicial system and has been treated with great respect by the French authorities. 

“She wishes for the trial to proceed in an orderly fashion in accordance with French law and with respect for all parties to the case,” the statement concluded.

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