- Title: Vans seen leaving luxury apartment buildling after Kardashian robbery
- Date: 3rd October 2016
- Summary: PARIS, FRANCE (OCTOBER 3, 2016) (REUTERS) VARIOUS EXTERIORS OF THE LUXURY FLATS WITH POLICE GUARDING ENTRANCE POLICE INVESTIGATOR WALKING INTO RESIDENCE VARIOUS OF FORENSIC POLICE TAKING PICTURE OF DOOR HANDLE CAMERAMEN AT WORK
- Embargoed: 18th October 2016 11:38
- Keywords: Kardashian robbery Paris jewelry Kim Kanye West
- Location: PARIS, FRANCE
- City: PARIS, FRANCE
- Country: France
- Topics: Celebrities,Arts/Culture/Entertainment
- Reuters ID: LVA00252GAXJB
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Two vans were seen leaving a luxury residence after masked men put a gun to reality TV star Kim Kardashian's temple, left her tied up in the bathroom of her flat in Paris and stole millions of dollars' worth of jewelry in the early hours of Monday, police and her publicist said.
Kardashian, wife of rapper Kanye West, later left France aboard a private jet from Le Bourget airport after speaking to investigators.
Five attackers, wearing ski masks and clothes with police markings, struck around 3 a.m. (0100 GMT) inside the exclusive apartment block where Kardashian was staying while attending Paris Fashion Week, a police source told Reuters.
Two of the men entered Kardashian's apartment after threatening the night guard with a hand gun. Kardashian was not beaten, but the robbers put a handgun against her temple before tying her up, the source said. iTELE television said she had been tied up with packing tape.
The robbers stole a box with 5-6 million euros' ($5.6-$6.7 million) worth of jewels and a ring worth about 4 million euros, the source said.
Kardashian was discovered "badly shaken but physically unharmed", according to her publicist, Ina Treciokas.
The Paris apartment block is a discreet building behind the city's Madeleine church, with several secret entrances, often frequented by movie and music stars who pay up to 15,000 euros a night.
The source said the attackers fled on bicycles. Police found the night guard in the staircase, his hand and feet bound.
Kardashian was in Paris with her mother Kris Jenner and her sisters Kendall Jenner and Kourtney Kardashian to attend the fashion week. The rest of the family stayed in a hotel.
The armed robbery could add to worries about safety in Paris, hit by a series of attacks by Islamist militants last year.
Tourist numbers to what is traditionally the most visited city in the world, fell 6.4 percent in the first half of 2016 as many Asians and Americans stayed away.
"Well our thoughts are with her because from what we know what happened to her was violent and traumatising and we worry about the image of Paris. This morning, we are seeing this news item in all news channels, probably worldwide, and at least in the United States at least, for sure it will run the whole day. Imagine the negative publicity this represents," Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet, head of the conservative opposition in Paris, told Europe 1 radio.
The robbery set social media alight, with many users expressing disbelief at the latest headline-grabbing event in the life of a TV star whose life is continually documented on screen and the internet.
Paris has seen several armed robberies on high-end jewelry stores in recent months. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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