Key Points
- Kim Kardashian testified in a Paris court regarding a robbery of millions of dollars in jewels.
- Kardashian was robbed at gunpoint in her Paris hotel room in October 2016.
- Kardashian described the traumatic experience, saying she feared she would be killed or raped during the attack.
Reality TV star Kim Kardashian told a Paris court overnight she feared she would be killed by the masked men who robbed her at gunpoint of some US$10 million ($15.5 million) of cash and jewellery in her hotel room in 2016, but expressed her forgiveness despite the "trauma".
The trial of 10 suspects has attracted huge media attention, with close to 500 reporters accredited, and crowds flocking around the courthouse on Paris's historic Ile de la Cité hoping for a glimpse of the celebrity.
"I came to Paris for Fashion Week and Paris is always a place I love so much," Kardashian said, giving the court her account of the night of 2-3 October, 2016, when she was robbed while staying at an exclusive, discreet hotel in the centre of the city.
She was in her room when she heard "stomping" up the stairs, then people "who I assumed were police officers because they were in uniform" entered the room, Kardashian said.
"Then I heard one of the gentlemen say 'ring' a few times over, 'ring', 'ring' and he pointed his finger with an accent," she said, adding she didn't at first "understand it was for my jewellery".
The man found what he was looking for: a diamond ring given to Kardashian by her then-husband, rapper Kanye West, and valued at US$4 million ($6.2 million).
The attackers then started looking for more valuables, threatened Kardashian with a gun and tied her up with a zip tie, she said, visibly emotional.
Asked by the presiding judge if she feared she was going to be killed, Kardashian replied: "I absolutely did. I thought I was going to die."
She said she also feared she would be raped but the man with the gun "closed my legs and put a tape on my leg".
An artist's sketch of Kim Kardashian testifying about the robbery of millions of dollars worth of jewels from her Paris hotel room in 2016. Source: AP / Valentin Pasquier
Who are the accused?
Those on trial are mainly men in their 60s and 70s with previous criminal records, with nicknames such as "Old Omar" and "Blue Eyes".
Sixty-eight-year-old Aomar Ait Khedache, known as "Old Omar", has admitted to tying up Kardashian but denies being the mastermind of the robbery.
Another suspect in the dock, 71-year-old Yunice Abbas, later wrote a book about the heist.
Khedache, who according to his lawyers, is no longer able to speak due to health problems, told Kardashian he "regrets" his actions in a letter that was read out in court. He said he had been "moved and touched by your tears".
Kardashian, who appeared tearful during the reading, said: "I do appreciate the letter, for sure", and "I've always believed in the second chance."
"I forgive you for what has taken place but it does not change the emotion, the feelings, the trauma and the way my life changed," she said.
Asked about suggestions made at the time that the robbery could have been a publicity stunt or insurance fraud, Kardashian said those reports had been "really hurtful".
The trial is scheduled to run until 23 May.
