“I Thought I Was Going to Die”: Kim Kardashian Testifies in Paris Robbery Trial
In a packed Paris courtroom, Kim Kardashian finally came face-to-face with the men accused of pulling off one of the most brazen celebrity heists in modern memory. Nearly nine years after being tied up and robbed at gunpoint in a luxury suite during Paris Fashion Week, Kardashian took the witness stand. And what she shared pulled the curtain back—way back—on a night that changed everything.
Day Two: The Star Takes the Stand
Wearing a sleek black suit by John Galliano, her jewelry glittering under the lights—eerily like the pieces stolen that night—Kardashian stood before the court with a calm that barely masked the weight of what she was about to say.
Her mother, Kris Jenner, sat behind her. So did a fleet of bodyguards. But it was just Kim and her story now.
“I was sure I was going to be raped,” she said, her voice trembling.
She described how she was wearing only a robe when five masked men—dressed like police officers—burst into her room at the No Address Hotel. One of them yanked her robe open. She froze.
She was certain an assault was about to happen.
Instead, they tied her legs, threw her on the bed, and barked their demand: “The ring.”
That $4 million diamond ring from then-husband Kanye West? It was right on the nightstand. They took it—and plenty more.
A Prayer on the Bed
“As I lay there, I thought: ‘This is it,’” she told the court. “I said a prayer. For my family. For my babies. For my mom and Kourtney. I thought my sister would walk in and find me… dead.”
The robbers dragged her into the bathroom, dropped her on the cold floor, and left. At least, she hoped they had left.
She waited in silence. Not breathing. Not crying. Just listening.
When the silence stretched long enough to feel like safety, she managed to drag her zip-tied hands across a bathroom fixture and cut herself free. She hopped down the stairs—barefoot, in shock—until she found her stylist and longtime friend, Simone Harouche.
Harouche had testified earlier that day. She told the court she’d hidden in a shower and heard Kardashian screaming, “I have babies! I need to live!”
She texted Kim’s bodyguard, Pascal Duvier—who, heartbreakingly, was out at a club with Kourtney at the time.
'Grandpa Robbers' on Trial
Ten men, most of them in their 60s and 70s, are now on trial. French tabloids have dubbed them the “grandpa robbers” due to their age and long rap sheets.
Two—Aomar Ait Khedache and Yunice Abbas—have already admitted they were involved. Abbas even co-wrote a book called I Kidnapped Kim Kardashian, which he now says was exaggerated.
Kardashian noted how old they looked now—some frail, some hard of hearing. But she didn’t let that soften anything. “I was terrified,” she said. “That fear hasn’t gone away.”
Khedache, who is deaf and mute, wrote her a letter in 2017. It was read aloud in court:
"I want to tell you human to human how I regret my actions… I hope this letter will help you forget the trauma you endured because of me."
Kim wiped tears and looked directly at him. “I forgive you,” she said quietly. “But that doesn’t erase what happened. Or who I became because of it.”
A Changed Life—and Lost Trust
“Before this happened, Paris was my happy place,” she said. “I’d walk the streets alone at night. It felt… magical.”
Now?
“I have four to six security guards with me at all times. Even when I’m at home. I can’t sleep unless I know someone’s watching the house.”
She admitted she doesn’t even trust police the same way. Not anymore.
“In the moment, I didn’t know who was on my side. I wondered if the cops were part of it. That’s how paranoid I became.”
Defendants Express Regret—Kind Of
As the court broke for a recess, another man on trial—Didier Dubreucq—stood up and said, “It’s a shame what happened to you. I don’t know what else to say, but I feel for your pain.”
Others followed with soft apologies. Abbas said, “I beg you to accept my apologies. They are sincere.”
Kardashian didn’t respond.
One of the accused, Gary Madar, was a former chauffeur. His own brother had worked for the Kardashians. He's accused of tipping off the crew.
When asked if she wanted to address him, Kim shook her head. “No.”
Not Just a Victim—Now an Advocate
In one of the more emotional turns, Kardashian pointed to her growing work in criminal justice reform.
She reminded the court that she’s studying law, that she passed California’s “baby bar” in 2021, and that she works with people wrongly imprisoned in the U.S.
“I understand what justice means—for both sides,” she said. “But I also know what it’s like to be on the other end of fear. To think you won’t make it home. To believe your kids might grow up without you.”
This wasn’t just closure—it was confrontation, on her own terms.
The Heist That Changed Everything
The 2016 robbery remains one of the most surreal celebrity crimes of the last 20 years.
Among the items stolen:
-
Two diamond Cartier bracelets
-
A gold and diamond Jacob necklace
-
Diamond Lorraine Schwartz earrings
-
A gold Rolex
-
And that infamous $4 million engagement ring
Only one item was ever recovered—a necklace, dropped during the thieves’ escape.
French police eventually arrested 17 people. Ten stand trial today. One died before proceedings. Another was excused due to dementia.
Trial Continues
Testimony will continue this week. Kardashian’s legal team and several other witnesses are expected to speak.
Prosecutors are pushing for strong sentences. Defense lawyers argue their clients’ ages—and Kardashian’s fame—should factor into how justice is served.
But regardless of the verdict, Kim Kardashian’s raw, powerful testimony has already become the emotional centerpiece of this trial—a chilling reminder that even the most photographed woman on Earth once felt completely invisible.
