Richard Hammond and family “gassed” and robbed on Saint Tropez holiday
The Grand Tour’s host Richard Hammond and his wife were gassed and robbed in their holiday villa in the South of France.
The former Top Gear host and his wife Mindy, along with 15 guests who were staying together in a San Tropez villa, were stunned with anaesthetic gas before a team of thieves stole from them.
Mindy, 53, described how she woke up as a group of burglars pilfered cash and jewellery.
“I went downstairs and into the hallway. The door into the living room was shut but I heard a male voice behind the door,” the columnist said.
“I thought it was another couple staying up and went back to bed.
“Actually, it was the burglars.”
She said the burglars searched the rooms of all of their 15 guests.
“That just makes my blood run cold,” she said. “I could have easily walked in and it could have been unpleasant.”
Guests at the villa had been enjoying a 1920s themed cocktail party the night before.
Gas raids have been on the rise in the region where the rich and famous holiday.
“You have got to have some kind of confidence to do that and to be quite satisfied that people aren’t going to wake up,” Mindy added.
“That morning I slept in until eight. I didn’t even wake to Richard’s snoring! Nobody woke up.
“It turned out they had burgled the neighbouring property as well in the same night.”
The robbers also targeted neighbouring villas on the same night.