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Kim Kardashian West robbery suspects picked up by French police

Posted at 6:18 AM, Jan 09, 2017
and last updated 2017-01-09 06:18:55-05

French police have detained 16 people for questioning over the armed robbery of Kim Kardashian West in Paris last October, a spokesman for the Paris Prosecutor has told CNN.

The group were picked up in Paris as well as the eastern suburbs of Raincy and Vincenne in a police operation that started at 6 a.m. Monday (12 a.m. ET).

Kardashian West was robbed at gunpoint inside her hotel room by a gang of men disguised as police officers at a luxury private mansion in Paris who made off with an estimated $10 million in cash and jewelry.

How did the robbers get in and what was stolen?

In the aftermath of the attack, the French Interior Ministry revealed five men threatened the concierge at the mansion with a weapon, handcuffed him and forced him to open the private apartment.

Two of the men were able to gain entry to Kardashian West’s room, according to the Paris prosecutor’s office, and a gun was held to her head.

A source familiar with the situation told CNN that Kardashian West pleaded for her life as she was threatened with the gun, and was bound and forced into a bathtub. Tape was placed over mouth.

Kardashian West’s two children, North West and Saint West, were in New York at the time, the source said.

The men took two cell phones and jewelry worth millions of dollars, according to the Interior Ministry. But only one of the phones belonged to Kardashian West, the source told CNN.

The prosecutor’s office said a ring worth an estimated 4 million euros ($4.5 million) and a jewelry box with contents worth about 5 million euros ($5.6 million) were stolen.

“They’re going to shoot me”

Kardashian West has kept herself out of the spotlight since the robbery, returning to her official Instagram Tuesday for the first time since the attack. She also released a Beyonce-esque family video on her website.

But she looks set to break her silence over the robbery in the new season of “Keeping Up With the Kardashians,” where a promo shows the reality star tearfully recalling the night thieves held her at gunpoint.

“They’re going to shoot me in the back,” Kardashian West tells her sisters. “There’s no way out. It makes me so upset to think about it.”

“Keeping Up With the Kardashians” halted filming for a time after the robbery and Kardashian West has not given any interviews about the incident. She had been in Paris for Fashion Week and E! cameras were not present at the time of the crime.

But based on the clip released Friday, the trauma will feature prominently during the show’s next season.

Kardashian West is also seen crying on the phone saying, “Don’t scare me, please. What’s going on?”

The new season of “Keeping Up With the Kardashians” debuts on E! in March.