A real-life version of Cops has seriously cut in on Paris Hilton's party time.
For those of you wondering why the hotel heiress was late in arriving at Thursday night's Motorola party in Hollywood, she was busy dealing with the Los Angeles Police Department, who had served a subpoena at her Hollywood Hills home.
"All I know is she was summoned to be a witness on a case," her publicist, Jack Ketsoyan, said Friday.
Video obtained by E! News showed several police swarming Hilton's home as a white limo idled outside, waiting to whisk her to a party. (The LAPD is familiar with the grounds, having been to Chez Hilton last weekend, when her Halloween party got so out of control Christian Slater ended up falling off the roof of the neighbor's house.)
According to an LAPD spokesperson, Hilton "is a witness in a criminal investigation."
Police want to know any information she has regarding Darnell Riley, an alleged burglar who targeted L.A.'s fabulous set.
Riley, 28, was arrested in March for a robbery involving Girls Gone Wild mastermind Joe Francis and remains behind bars at the Los Angeles County Jail. Riley is also being investigated for a high-profile heists at the homes of Johnson & Johnson heiress Casey Johnson, club promoter Tommy Alastra and the Hiltons, per the New York Post.
The newspaper quoted an unnamed police source saying many of the crimes followed similar patterns: an unnamed Elite model would hit the party circuit and weasel herself into the confidence of the target, then pass along relevant info (security codes, house layout, etc.) to Riley, who would allegedly handle the breaking and entering.
"Paris allegedly told Joe Francis that an associate of Darnell Riley's admitted at a party that Darnell Riley was involved in the burglary," Riley's attorney, Ronald Richards, tells E! News. Francis then informed LAPD, which prompted the visit to Hilton's.
The Hilton sisters were robbed Aug. 4, 2004. The perp, who apparently entered by cutting through a screen, got away with a laptop, wads of cash and more than $100,000 in jewelry. Also missing: several of Nicky's designer bags, a collection of watches, photographs and videotapes. The Post later reported that Paris Hilton was being blackmailed to keep one tape away from the public--an item neither the Hiltons nor police have confirmed.
Richards says that Hilton was subpoenaed because she "has not agreed to any interviews with the prosecution or defense...I'd be interested to see if she even had a conversation about Joe Francis."
Asked if Riley was involved in any of the crimes, Richards responds: "That's absolutely not true." Riley's next court date in the Francis case is set for Nov. 21.
As for Hilton's little interlude Thursday, she chatted with police until approximately 10:30 p.m., when she boarded the limo and departed to Motorola's annual party benefiting Toys for Tots.
The police and subpoena didn't warrant a mention once Hilton arrived. Instead she was all business. "Motorola always has the best party of the year," she said upon entering the bash. "So I'm really happy to be here."
(Updated Nov. 7, 2005 at 3:45 p.m. PT.)