EXCLUSIVE - 'If I caught my guy cheating on me, I would stab him': The chilling threat of 'French Kim Kardashian' months before lover was found with knife in his chest

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The 'French Kim Kardashian' reality TV star facing 30 years in prison for trying to murder her fiancée once warned: 'If I caught my guy cheating on me, I would stab him with a knife'.

It is part of a grim catalogue of evidence which could be used to end the showbusiness career of Nabilla Benattia.

The 22-year-old is currently on remand in solitary confinement inside a women's jail in Versailles, west of Paris, after being refused bail.

Nabilla is under investigation for the attempted murder of Thomas Vergara, 28, at an apartment hotel in nearby Boulogne-Billancourt.

She has emphatically denied being 'consumed by jealousy and sexual aggression' as she allegedly plunged a knife into her lover's chest earlier this month.

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Idol: Nabilla Benattia, dubbed the French Kim Kardashian, with her idol in Miami. Her burgeoning career in showbusiness is now in tatters after being arrested for the attempted murder of her boyfriend

From stardom to solitary: Benattia pictured by police after her arrest, left, for allegedly stabbing Thomas Vergara, together right, when 'consumed by jealousy and sexual aggression'

Fame: The pair's romance was played out entirely on TV after she was awarded her own show following her appearance on 'The Reality-TV Angels' show in France last year

A legal source close to the case said: 'Nabilla is adamant that she is completely innocent, and her only ambition is to get back to work. She is becoming as famous as Kim Kardashian, but she wants to be known for good things, not for trying to stab her fiancée to death.'

Kim Kardashian and Nabilla met for the first time earlier this year, posing for pictures in Miami, and appearing in a video in which the French beauty burst out crying when she met her American idol.

But MailOnline has uncovered a disturbing history of violence and threats between Nabilla and Thomas, whose entire romance has been played out on reality TV.

As recently as January, she gave an interview in Geneva, Switzerland, the city where she was brought up, in which she discussed their 'explosive' relationship.

Nabilla admitted to 'fights', 'vases being thrown', and other 'hotel room breakages', saying that she always ran away if her boyfriend became too aggressive.

And, in words which could be vital in court, Nabilla also said: 'I am the worst at being jealous. It's unhealthy'.

Asked if she checked Thomas's text messages, she replied: 'No. But if I caught my guy cheating on me, I would stab him with a knife.'

Thomas was found with stab wounds to the chest and lying in a pool of blood when emergency workers burst into their hotel room at 2.30am on Friday November 7.

He was rushed to an emergency ward at the Georges-Pompidou Hospital in central Paris, where medics operated to save his life. 

Awestruck: Benattia is amazed at meeting Kim Kardashian during a filming of her show 

Overcome: Benattia bursts into tears after the surprise visit. She has said that her ambition in life is to become an It girl in the United States

Nabilla had made a frantic call to the police, saying Thomas had been attacked by three strangers when they got out of a taxi outside the hotel. 

But CCTV footage soon exposed her story as a farce – there was no sign of the 'attackers'.

Film instead showed the couple arriving in reception alone and in good spirits, then making their way up to their apartment – one with a kitchenette containing a sharp cooking knife.

It was found on the pavement outside, but just below their window, suggesting Nabilla had thrown it out.

Nabilla then claimed Thomas was high on cocaine and alcohol, and had 'accidentally stabbed himself' during a violent quarrel.

Interviewed by an examining magistrate, Nabilla then offered a third version of the drama – saying she was 'in fear of my life' when Thomas started hitting her.

Nabilla again told the judge that Thomas 'stabbed himself' in the confusion, as she desperately tried to get away.

Martin Desrues, her lawyer, said: 'The only version by Miss Benattia is the one that is listed on the record, the only one she delivered to the police while in custody.

'The first comments reported in the media have no value. They were only vaguely reported by people on the spot.'

Mr Desrues admitted there had been 'a few problematic situations' between Nabilla and Thomas, but said tests proved Thomas was on cocaine, while his client 'never takes drugs'. Mr Desrues said Thomas's fingerprints were found on the knife too.

Passion: The model-turned TV star has admitted that her relationship with Thomas was tumultuous with 'fights', 'vases being thrown' and hotel breakages

Defence: Benattia has variously claimed that Thomas was attacked by a group of men and also that he accidentally stabbed himself during the argument at the hotel, above

Nabilla's Italian mother, Marie-Luce, also weighed into the debate, saying she had been warned about Thomas's aggression by her daughter's bodyguard.

Marie-Luce said: 'Jaja had alerted us. I blame myself now for not having taken this seriously enough.

'Whenever I approached the subject with Nabilla, she denied it. I could not interfere in the relationship. They argued, it is true, but I put it down to the stress of fame placed on Nabilla'.

On November 18, a few days after Nabilla was charged with attempted murder, the recovering Thomas insisted to police that Nabilla had indeed stabbed him during an argument.

The next step of the legal process will be for the couple to be interviewed together, to try and explain inconsistencies in Nabilla's story.

Magistrates have also charged Nabilla with 'aggravated violence' in relation to a previous incident with Thomas in Coudoux, near Marseille, in the south of France on August 8.

Thomas checked himself into hospital with an unexplained knife wound to the back, telling doctors he had 'fallen on a kitchen knife' while with Nabilla.

It is by no means the first that Nabilla, who was 13 when her Algerian father divorced her mother, has been in trouble with the law either.

As a teenager in 2009, she was sentenced to six months in prison in Switzerland for her part in a financial fraud involving stolen passports, and served a month in a youth detention centre.

Nabilla is now considered a 'vulnerable prisoner' in Versailles. She is still being treated for shock, and there are also fears of attacks by other inmates because of her fame.

Feted: The 22-year-old has become a household name in France. Here she is pictured with Jean Paul Gaultier during Paris Fashion Week last July

Suspicions: Thomas checked himself into hospital with an unexplained knife wound to the back in August, telling doctors he had 'fallen on a kitchen knife' while with Nabilla

Dark past: As a teenager in 2009, Benattia was sentenced to six months in prison in Switzerland for her part in a financial fraud involving stolen passports, and served a month in a youth detention centre

'Her fellow prisoners do watch television,' said another prosecuting source, referring to Nabilla's first big break on 'Les Anges de la téléréalité' ('The Reality-TV Angels') last year.

A number of French wannabes were placed in a Florida apartment, all dreaming of finding stardom. 

Nabilla, then a little known model, said: 'I want to become an It-girl in the U.S.A.'

Highlights included the meeting with Kim Kardashian, and also coining her catchphrase 'Non, mais allô quoi', which translates loosely as 'Er, hel-lo'.

Nabilla was then given her own show, Allô Nabilla, which was broadcast from glamorous locations including Los Angeles and Paris.

The central storyline of the show is Nabilla and Thomas's relationship, which started when they both met on The Angels.

The last season of Allô Nabilla ended with Thomas proposing to Nabilla on a romantic evening in Marrakesh, Morocco, and the couple had started a clothing line together.

'Everything was in place for the couple to enjoy a golden future together,' said a programme insider. 'Now Nabilla is facing a lifetime in prison – it's a horrendous situation'.