Ten people go on trial in Paris for sexist cyber-harassment targeting Brigitte Macron over unsubstantiated gender and sexuality claims
PARIS: Ten individuals will stand trial in a Paris criminal court for the sexist cyber-harassment of French First Lady Brigitte Macron.
The case represents the latest legal action concerning unsubstantiated gender claims that have targeted the presidential couple for years.
This trial follows a defamation lawsuit filed by Brigitte and President Emmanuel Macron in the United States at the end of July.
That US lawsuit addresses a widely amplified online rumour alleging Brigitte Macron was assigned male at birth.
The defendants comprise eight men and two women aged between 41 and 60 years old.
They each face potential prison sentences of up to two years if convicted of cyber-harassment.
Prosecutors accuse them of posting numerous malicious comments about the first lady’s gender and sexuality.
Some comments even equated the couple’s 24-year age difference to paedophilia according to court documents.
Brigitte Macron initiated the process by filing a formal complaint in August 2024.
That complaint triggered a police investigation leading to arrests in December 2024 and February 2025.
Among the defendants is publicist Aurelien Poirson-Atlan who operates under the social media pseudonym Zoe Sagan.
Another defendant is Delphine J, a self-proclaimed spiritual medium using the pseudonym Amandine Roy.
Delphine J was previously subject to a libel complaint filed by Brigitte Macron in 2022.
She had posted a four-hour YouTube interview in 2021 alleging the first lady was once a man named Jean-Michel Trogneux.
A 2024 ruling ordering damages to Brigitte Macron and her brother was later overturned on appeal.
The first lady has since taken that separate case to France’s highest appeals court.
The gender claims first emerged around President Macron’s initial election in 2017.
These claims have been amplified by far-right and conspiracy theory circles in both France and the United States.
The Macrons’ US lawsuit specifically targets conservative podcaster Candace Owens for her series titled Becoming Brigitte.
Their American lawyer stated the couple plans to present scientific evidence and photos proving Brigitte Macron is not transgender.
Several Paris trial defendants shared posts from the American influencer according to court documents.
One defendant shared claims about people going door-to-door in Amiens to investigate the Brigitte affair.
Other prominent female politicians have faced similar disinformation about their gender or sexuality.
These targets include former US First Lady Michelle Obama and former US Vice President Kamala Harris.
New Zealand’s former Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has also been subject to comparable gender-based disinformation. – AFP
