First suspect charged in Kim Kardashian robbery case

French police have filed charges against their first suspect in the Kim Kardashian armed robbery case.

The reality TV star was bound, gagged, and held at gunpoint in October (16) as masked men swiped jewelry and cell phones from her Paris apartment.

On Monday (09Jan17), authorities conducted a series of raids and detained 17 people in connection to the attack, and on Thursday (12Jan17), it was revealed prosecutors had formally charged a 63-year-old man, only identified in the media as Yunice A., with counts of armed robbery in an organized gang, kidnapping, and criminal association.

Officials are seeking to hold him in custody for the time being without bail, according to TMZ.com.

Meanwhile, Reuters reports a spokesman for the prosecutor's office has revealed three people are under formal investigation as part of the Kardashian case, although it is not clear if that includes Yunice.

The developments emerge hours after authorities released four more of those detained on Wednesday night (11Jan17). They had previously allowed three others to walk free, including the Kardashian family's longtime driver, 40-year-old Michael Madar.

Kim has yet to personally speak out about the latest breakthrough in the case, but her sister Khloe told breakfast show Today just learning about the arrests helped to reassure her family that justice will be served.

"It was a relief when I heard that, but we don't know any other information," she shared in a pre-taped interview which aired on Thursday.

Khloe admitted the harrowing incident was "traumatizing and terrifying" for Kim, but her loved ones are thankful she escaped physically unharmed.

She added, "Genuinely, that's when you get down on your knees and pray and you thank the Lord that nothing worse happened."

Kim recently opened up about the robbery in a trailer for the upcoming season of the family's reality show Keeping Up With the Kardashians, and in the footage, the mother-of-two broke down in tears as she recounted the attack to sisters Khloe and Kourtney.

"'They're going to shoot me in the back. There's no way out'," she recalled of her frantic thoughts at the time. "It makes me so upset to think about it."

Kim's terrifying experience prompted her to take a break from the spotlight for the remainder of 2016, but Khloe has attacked critics who believe the robbery was a "consequence" the family members risked by flaunting their lavish lifestyles online.

The defiant star told Today, "No, I don't believe that because people show their life anywhere that anyone deserves those consequences of getting robbed."

Kim has since returned to the public eye and arrived in Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, for her first official appearance since the robbery on Thursday, shortly before the news of the charges broke.