Kim Kardashian-West Testifies In Paris, France Robbery Case

Months after a nightmarish encounter with robbers, Kim Kardashian went on the record with the court system of Paris, France. TMZ reported that the social media starlet was visited by a French judge in New York City for multiple days as she gave her testimony recounting the events. The report claims the judge also assisted Kardashian-West in identifying the potential suspects for the October 2016 break in that resulted in the taking of nearly $5.6 million in jewelry.

As told by TMZ, the French justice system differs from that of the United States. There, judges involved in a criminal case can use their own discretion to decide if travel is warranted to interview victims, especially victims of high-profile crimes. That is not the only difference that seemingly worked in Kardashian’s favor. Under the French system, alleged victims are not required to participate in a cross-examination, which saved her from returning to the scene.

According to TMZ’s sources, Kardashian brought along her two children, North and Saint, for her trip to New York City but her husband, Kanye West, was noticeably absent. Many suggested Kim was concerned the event would be too stressful on West.

Over the past few months, a lot of progress has been made with the case. Seventeen people were arrested in a sweep that spanned several cities, but in January, Kim was only able to point out two of the men that took part in the robbery — the two that broke in and held her hostage as they ransacked her apartment.

ET Online released parts of one of the suspect’s testimony as published in the French newspaper, Le Monde. Suspect, Aomar Ait KIhedache, who was known as the ‘Old Man’ told police that the jewelry stolen from Kardashian-West was melted before being sold in Belgium. That is everything but her 20-carat emerald cut diamond engagement ring with an estimated worth of $4 million.

“On the spot, things are going pretty well. Dressed in a bathrobe, the young woman is panicked. They take the jewels. (…) We take it. The person who is with me tied her to the bed I think (…) And I put her in the bathroom. We went back down…With gentleness, but we did not show a weapon in front of a woman…For the jewelry never to be recognized, we made the decision, in common to melt them. One of the people has taken care of it. He came back with bars… In all, there had to be eight hundred and a few grams, which gave an amount of ah… 25 or 28 thousand, something like that…”

KIhedache’s account closely aligned with the initial report provided by Kim, as also released by ET Online via Le Journal du Dimanche. In it, it is claimed that Kardashian stated the following:

“I saw two men coming who were hooded, plus the hotel receptionist who was strapped; one had a ski mask and a cap and jacket with ‘Police’ written on it and one had ski goggles. He snatched my Blackberry. I was wearing a bathrobe, naked underneath. They pushed me on the bed and strapped me with plastic cables, taping my hands, mouth and legs. They carried me into the bathroom, more specifically, the bathtub.”

While the courts continue to hash out the details of the robbery and determine the punishment for the multiple suspects, Kardashian will also give fans more of a personal peek into the aftermath and events leading to the shake up. A trailer for Keeping Up With the Kardashians teases footage of Kim sitting with her family and explaining the events. The video is scheduled to show in March.

https://youtu.be/MP473ail5Tg

[Featured Image by Lionel Cironneau/AP Images]