Ten people found guilty of cyberbullying wife of French President
A Paris court sentenced ten people for spreading false online accusations labelling Brigitte Macron transgender and a paedophile on 5th January, The Telegraph and other agencies have reported.
Eight men and two women, aged 41 to 60, including a teacher and a publicist, were handed suspended sentences between four and eight months, with one defendant receiving a six-month custodial sentence.
The incarceration term was ordered for Jean-Chirstophe P., 65, a property manager, who did not attend the hearing.
The other nine defendants were convicted of “intentionally harming the plaintiff” with “malicious, degrading and insulting messages” accusing The First Lady of France of paedophilia, Thierry Donnard, the presiding judge said.
He declared the constant online attacks comprised cyberbullying, causing a decline in the physical and mental wellbeing of the defendant.
Mrs Macron was not present at the two-day trial in October. However, her daughter Tiphaine Auzière testified she had seen a “deterioration” in her mother over the accusation.
The convictions came after a Paris court overturned libel convictions on July 10th against two online figures for disseminating claims that the wife of the French President was assigned male gender at birth.
Throughout the trail, Aurélien Poirson-Atlan, 41, a notable social media presence known as Zoé Sagan, persistently called the charges a “shocking state secret involving state-sanctioned paedophilia.” He was handed an eight-month suspended prison term. His X account had previously been suspended in 2025 after its inclusion in multiple judicial investigations.
Bertrand Scholler, 56, an art dealer, received a six-month suspended sentence after posting several hostile photographs of Mrs Macron online. After the trial, he declared the verdict a “a decision by decree of power”, adding: “If what you say does not please, you will be condemned.”
Delphine Jegousse, 51, a self-labelled “medium and author” was sentenced to six months suspended, with prosecutors claiming she had a “major role” in the proliferation of the conspiracy after posting a four-hour YouTube video in 2021.
At the hearing, she said she felt “attacked” by the defendants supposed transgenderism, due to her own identity as “a biological woman.”
A teacher, a computer scientist and an elected official were also sentenced, being described by the court as “followers.” Prosecutors claimed they fuelled abuse with persistent posting.
During a television interview prior to the outcome, Mrs Macron said: “I fight constantly against harassment. But if I don’t set an example, how can I ask young people to do the same?”
The Macrons’ defamation lawsuit against popular American influencer, Candace Owens, over claims Brigitte Macron was born male is ongoing, with the defendants set provide photographic evidence in court confirming her gender.
The Telegraph plus other agencies, Maghrebi.org
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