Five white middle-aged male cyclists were behind the £9million heist at Kim Kardashian’s Paris flat, the reality TV star has told French police.
Testaments from Ms Kardashian and the apartment concierge also suggest the men were French nationals and almost certainly career criminals.
The 35-year-old American left France by private plane within a few hours of the attack on Monday morning, but is said to be briefing detectives in transatlantic phone calls from the US.
Kim Kardashian (left, with bodyguard Pascal Duvier) has been criticised by some for flaunting her wealth prior to the robbery. She flew back to the US with her children (right) on Monday
In a further dramatic twist, officers said there may be CCTV images of the gang both arriving and leaving the luxury apartment block in central Paris, close to the British Embassy.
A source close to the investigation said: ‘There have been no arrests, but we are slowly piecing together profiles of those involved in this crime.
‘What we have been told so far is that they were in their forties or fifties, and were of European appearance.
‘They came went on bicycles, and only spent a few minutes inside the flat, suggesting they knew exactly what they were doing.
‘We have studied huge amounts of CCTV film in the area, and there is a chance that images of the men may have been caught on camera.’
Police are looking at CCTV footage from the area around Kim Kardashian’s luxury apartment in Paris (pictured, on the left)
Despite the possibility of CCTV being available, judicial police have not yet released any to the public.
In Britain or America it would be standard policy to distribute pictures of possible suspects as soon as possible.
Ms Kardashian claims a gun was placed against her head and she was tied up and gagged and pushed into a marble bath before the men took the jewels, which were ‘easily on display on a bedside table,’ said the source.
Kim Kardashian and Kanye West (pictured) spend a lot of time in Paris and know the city well
As the men ran away, she managed to ‘wriggle out’ of her hand ties, and get onto a balcony, where she started shouting.
The concierge – who suffered roughly the same fate at Ms Kardashian – has also told police one of the robbers at one point said: ‘Where is the wife of the rapper?’
This was a reference to Ms Kardashian’s husband, the performing artist Kanye West.
Despite such detailed testimony, officers have noted inconsistencies, and remain baffled at the apparent ease with which the robbers got into a VIP flat.
The couple (seen here with their children North and Saint in New York following her Paris ordeal) have now returned to LA but are co-operating with the French investigation
There are all kinds of security protocols limiting access to the nine apartments in the building, which all have armoured doors that are locked from the inside.
Ms Kardashian claimed she later untied herself, removed her gag and escaped from the locked bathroom, before calling her bodyguard, Pascal Duvier, at 2.56am.
Mr Duvier, the muscular giant who is usually always at her side, was out at a nightclub with other Kardashian family members at the time.
He was declared bankrupt earlier this year.
