PARIS — A French court on Friday found eight men guilty in the 2016 armed robbery of Kim Kardashian at a luxury Paris hotel, including the 69-year-old ringleader Aomar Aït Khedache. Despite the convictions, none of the defendants will serve additional prison time, as the court cited their advanced age and the long delay between the crime and trial.
Presiding Judge David De Pas said the “not very severe” sentences were influenced by the fact that most defendants are in their 60s and 70s, with the eldest aged 79. The court acquitted two of the ten on trial, but allowed all convicted individuals to walk free from the courtroom, having already served time in pretrial detention.
Khedache received the stiffest penalty—eight years in prison, with five suspended. Three others were sentenced to seven years, also with five suspended. Additional defendants received three- to five-year sentences, nearly all suspended. An eighth man was fined on a weapons charge.
The decision comes nearly nine years after masked men dressed as police broke into Kardashian’s suite at the Hôtel de Pourtalès during Paris Fashion Week, held her at gunpoint, bound her with zip ties, and made off with over $10 million worth of jewelry. A single diamond-encrusted cross dropped during their escape remains the only item recovered.
“You caused harm. You caused fear,” Judge De Pas told the defendants.
Though not present for the verdict, Kardashian released a statement expressing gratitude to French authorities for seeing the case through. “The crime was the most terrifying experience of my life, leaving a lasting impact on me and my family,” she said. “While I’ll never forget what happened, I believe in the power of growth and accountability and pray for healing for all.”
Kardashian’s legal team added: “She looks forward to putting this tragic episode behind her.”
Khedache, whose DNA was found on the tape used to bind Kardashian, was a key figure in the investigation. He was caught on wiretaps organizing the crew and orchestrating the fencing of the stolen gems in Belgium. Known in France as part of the “grandpa robbers” or les papys braqueurs, several defendants appeared in court with walking sticks and orthopedic shoes. Prosecutors warned against underestimating them due to their age.
Kardashian’s emotional testimony earlier in the trial described the 2016 ordeal in stark detail. “I absolutely did think I was going to die,” she told the court. “I have babies. I have to make it home.”
She recounted how the intruders threw her onto a bed, zip-tied her limbs, and dragged her into a marble bathroom, where she was told to stay silent. After they fled, she scraped the tape off her wrists using a sink and hid barefoot with a friend until help arrived.
During a pivotal courtroom moment, Kardashian locked eyes with Khedache and forgave him after hearing a letter of apology read aloud. “I do appreciate the letter, I forgive you,” she said. “But it doesn’t change the feelings and the trauma and the fact that my life was forever changed.”
Khedache again asked for forgiveness during the verdict hearing, submitting a handwritten note expressing “a thousand pardons.” Other defendants also expressed remorse.
The robbery reverberated far beyond Paris, forcing a cultural shift in celebrity behavior. Once known for documenting her life in real time on social media, Kardashian ceased posting her locations and stripped her platforms of lavish displays. “People were watching … They knew where I was,” she said. Privacy, for her and others, became the new luxury.
Paris, once a refuge where Kardashian roamed the streets at night with ease, became a memory clouded by trauma. The robbery marked a turning point in her public life—and in how high-profile individuals approach safety in an era of relentless digital exposure.
Even by the standards of France’s methodical legal process, the nearly decade-long journey to justice was unusually protracted. For Kardashian, the verdict brings some closure—but the experience, she says, changed her forever.
