Kim Kardashian To Blame For 2016 Paris Heist; She's Too 'Showy,' Robber Says

One of the masterminds behind the infamous Paris heist in 2016 of Kim Kardashian has no one to blame but the victim herself.

In an exclusive interview with VICE News posted Saturday on YouTube, Yunis Abbas, one of the 12 robbers involved in the huge scheme, revealed that the 41-year-old SKIMS founder should have been "a little less showy" about her lavish lifestyle because that was the reason she got chosen to be the heist victim.

"They should be a little less showy towards people who can't afford it. For some people, it's provocative," Abbas told VICE's Tir Dhondy when asked about his advice about celebrities openly posting their belongings on Instagram.

"Since she was throwing money away, I was there to collect it, and that was that. Guilty? No, I don't care," he added.

Abbas was part of a group of gangsters over 60, dubbed "grandpa gangsters" on social media, when the scandal hit. He spent almost two years in prison for robbing the "Keeping Up With the Kardashians" alum of $10 million worth of jewelry, including her precious 20-carat engagement ring given by ex-husband, Kanye West, valued at $4 million. He got released from his sentence due to "health reasons" involving his heart.

When asked about the details of how the robbery was prepared, Abbas revealed that he discovered through the internet that Kardashian was coming to the French capital for Paris Fashion Week. From there, he noticed the business mogul was flaunting her jewelry on social media.

"We got in through the little door that was open from the inside. As soon as we got in, we took control of the concierge. We overpowered him. We tied him up, but then we looked for the keys for the bedroom she stayed in," Abbas said upon arriving in front of the Hotel Pourtales.

Abbas said he remained downstairs as a lookout, while his co-conspirators proceeded to Kardashian's room and tied her up in the bathtub. However, when the reality star's secretary called for help in the United States via 911, it also scared them, making them lose more time.

Abbas was easily caught by the authorities because he already had a record, and his DNA was left at the scene when they tied up the guard of the hotel.

Kardashian openly spoke about the incident, saying she had suffered from agoraphobia during the pandemic mainly because of the 2016 robbery.

Agoraphobia is a fear of being in situations that might be difficult to escape or that there might be no available person to help in situations going wrong, according to NHS.uk.

"I feel like I had agoraphobia, definitely, after my robbery in Paris," Kardashian told sister Khloé Kardashian on their reality show. "Like, definitely would stay in, hated to go out, I didn't want anyone to know where I was or be seen. I just had such anxiety."

She continued, "We had just gone to Paris. We had just started traveling, and then quarantine happened. Now I'm, like, such a freak all over again and never want to, like, leave [home]."

Despite the lack of guilt, Abbas acknowledged that Kardashian was traumatized by the incident, saying, "You don't come out of it unscathed. We didn't expect this. Of course, she must be traumatized. I don't doubt it."