When Kim Kardashian-West was robbed at gunpoint in Paris at the Hotel de Pourtales , she disappeared from social media and went through a healing process. Clearly, it was a traumatic experience for the TV personality, with millions stolen in jewelry, including a $4 million ring from husband Kanye West. According to USA Today, the French police arrested 17 suspects in connection with the robbery in January 2017. Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like Kardashian will get any of her jewelry back.
It appears to be an inside job, with Kardashian’s driver Michael Madar, 40, and his brother Gary Madar, 27, being two of the arrests. There were reportedly 14 men and 3 women involved in the heist, with ages ranging from 23 – 72 years old. One of the men, named “Omar A.” or “Omar the Old” was allegedly being considered the “mastermind” behind the robbery, with his DNA found on some of the tape that Kardashian had been bound with during the robbery.
In a police report published via Le Journal du Dimanche, Kardashian had relayed the following information about the robbery:
I heard a noise at the door, like, footsteps, and I shouted to ask who was there, but no one answered … I called my bodyguard at 2:56 a.m. Then, beyond the sliding doors, I saw two people arrive with the gentleman from reception, and he was tied up. Both men were hooded, one had a ski mask and he had a cap and a jacket with ‘police’ on it. The second man had the same ‘police’ clothes, but did not have any ski mask … It was the one with the ski mask who stayed with me.
Kardashian continued:
He had a strong French accent and asked me for my ring [in English]. He looked at what was on the bedside table. It was worth $4 million. He took out a gun and I showed him the ring. He had gloves. He asked me where the jewels and the money were. And at that point, they tied me up and put plastic cables and scotch tape on my hands, and then taped my mouth and my legs … During the theft, they had the hotel’s mobile phone that did not stop ringing, and they spoke in French. I got the impression they were saying they had to leave.
After the robbery, Kardashian had a private plane waiting for her at Paris-Le Bourget Airport to take her back to the States.
Veteran Paris reporter Frederic Ploquin told Vanity Fair that Kardashian’s place in Paris is well-known to all, especially thieves. Ploquin explained:
They think they will be free of cameras, free to receive friends, visitors . . . but drivers, bodyguards, paparazzi, girl furnishers all . . . know about this place. That makes maybe hundreds of people who know about this place. This makes the investigation very complex. You have hundreds of suspects.
The Hotel de Pourtales is called the No Address Hotel and it is a historic private mansion, located at 7 Rue Tronchet. The mansion consists of luxury apartments with hotel-like accommodations, according to People. In order to stay at the hotel, you must sign in on a secure website with a passcode as it’s extremely exclusive. Kardashian’s husband Kanye West had been staying at the hotel for years and it appears that we may have seen it during the couple’s wedding episodes of Keeping Up With the Kardashians. People reports that guests of the hotel have included Prince, Jennifer Lawrence, Leonardo DiCaprio, Jay-Z, Beyonce and Madonna.