How ruthless armed jewel gangs are increasingly targeting rich tourists in France after Kim Kardashian robbery
More and more rich foreigners are falling prey to daring thefts
RICH tourists in Paris have lost jewellery worth millions of dollars after a wave of sophisticated armed jewel robberies - and there could be more 'Pink Panther' crime to come.
This morning it was reported two Qatari sisters were robbed of jewellery worth £4.5MILLION in a daring heist in the French capital.
The terrifying attack comes just a month after Kim Kardashian was robbed of jewels worth nearly £9million during an armed raid on her flat in the French capital.
A police source said: "It is the kind (of crime) that is becoming increasingly common."
Well-organised crime gangs often look out for rich tourists arriving at Le Bourget or Charles de Gaulle airports and then follow them on to the major A1 road in the north of the city.
"If they stop for petrol, or are held up in traffic, then the gangs pounce," the source added.
Peter Eley, Senior Lecturer in Criminology at Buckinghamshire New University, says Facebook and Twitter are also a key part of the phenomenon.
He told the Sun Online: "A lot of the people who are victims of these crimes are high-profile figures in the public domain and their patterns of movement can be predicted as they visit certain areas, land at certain places and go to certain destinations.
"The social media aspect also adds to this, particularly in the cases of people like Kim Kardashian.
"People, especially in the use of Twitter, are arguably making their whereabouts apparent, and the criminal fraternity are able to target them."
"The gang members wear hoods so they cannot be identified on CCTV cameras."
Jewel thefts in Paris is a key theme of the 'Pink Panther' series of films, featuring French detective Inspector Clouseau.
Qatar has massively strong links with Paris, and multi-millionaires from Doha, the Gulf State’s capital, fly in and out all the time.
Many are tourists, while others are involved in property deals, and business interests including Paris St Germain football club, which is Qatari-owned.
Two armed robbers are believed to have forced a luxury chauffeur-driven Bentley motor to stop in a lay-by on the A1 after the two women landed at the capital's Le Bourget airport.
They then attacked the pair - aged in their 60s - and their driver with pepper spray (which is legal in France), stealing items from the car's boot.
Items stolen are believed to have included jewellery, clothes and luggage.
"They stole everything in the vehicle," one source confirmed.
Another added: "‘It was a spectacular heist - the victims were terrified."
French police confirmed they are investigating the heist, which took place around 9pm last night.
Kim Kardashian also flew in and out of the airport in north east Paris during her stay.
Only last week Bollywood star Mallika Sherawat was beaten, sprayed with tear gas and robbed in her Paris flat.
The robbery was immediately likened to the heist on Kardashian's apartment last month.
Reality star Kim was tied up and robbed at gunpoint of jewellery including a £3.5million diamond ring given to her by her rapper husband Kanye West.
The gang who carried out the robbery are still on the loose despite being caught on CCTV.
Social media regular Kardashian has since been largely absent from her online accounts as close sources report she was severely shaken by the incident.
Thieves from Paris’s northern suburbs are well known for targeting cars in the area around Le Bourget and Charles de Gaulle airport.
Last night's heist follows a spectacular car jacking in August 2014 when a Saudi Arabian prince’s convoy was attacked as it made its way from a central Paris hotel to Le Bourget.
A gang of up to eight robbers in two BMWs hijacked the first of about 10 vehicles in the convoy, driving off with the three occupants before letting them go.
The Saudis’ Mercedes and one of the thieves’ BMWs were later found abandoned and burned out.
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