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A Paris court has found 10 people guilty of cyberbullying French President Emmanuel Macron’s wife Brigitte by spreading false claims about her gender identity and insinuations related to the age difference between the couple.
The defendants, eight men and two women aged 41 to 65, are accused of having posted “numerous malicious comments” falsely claiming that Brigitte Macron was assigned male at birth, and linking their 24-year age gap to pedophilia.
The relationship between Emmanuel Macron, 48, and Brigitte, 72, who met while she was a drama teacher at his school, has been the subject of intense interest since he became president in 2017.
Eight defendants were handed suspended sentences of four to eight months in prison, while a ninth man was sentenced to six months in prison over his absence from the hearing.
Presiding judge Thierry Donard described the claims of the French first lady’s “alleged paedophilia” as “malicious, degrading and insulting”, saying the defendants had received sentences for “intentionally harming the complainant”.
They and a tenth person were ordered to follow a course against hate speech online, to be paid at their own expense.
Three individuals considered to be the key instigators online also had their social media accounts suspended for six months.

Jean Ennochi, the legal representative of Brigitte Macron, emphasized the significance of preventive measures and account suspensions for the offenders following the court’s decision. “The key elements are the educational courses and the suspension of certain accounts,” Ennochi remarked.

Emmanuel Macron and Brigitte Macron, linking arms, in front of trees and bushes.

In recent times, the age difference between French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte has become a frequent subject of online discussion.

The couple’s relationship has been at the center of online debate, with false information being disseminated widely. Instead of dismissing this misinformation, the Macrons have chosen to address it through legal channels.

In court in October, he defended his right to what he called “satire”.
Another of the most prominent defendants, gallery owner Bertrand Scholler, 56, said that the trial was targeting his “freedom to think” faced with the “media deep state”. The court sentenced Scholler to a six-month suspended sentence and an immediate suspension of his social media accounts for six months.
Also on trial was a woman already the subject of a libel complaint filed by Brigitte Macron in 2022: Delphine Jegousse, 51, a self-proclaimed spiritual medium who goes by the pseudonym Amandine Roy.
The court sentenced Jegousse to a six-month suspended jail term and the suspension of her online accounts, also for half a year.

The individual involved received an eight-month suspended sentence, along with a six-month suspension from social media platforms.

Claims amplified by conspiracy theorists

Emerging as early as Macron’s election in 2017, the claims have been amplified by far-right and conspiracy theorist circles in France and in the US, where transgender rights have become a hot-button issue at the heart of US culture wars.
In the case against Candace Owens, who produced a series titled Becoming Brigitte, the Macrons are planning to offer “scientific” evidence and photos proving that the first lady is not transgender, according to their US lawyer. Several of those on trial in Paris shared posts from the US influencer.
— With additional reporting by the Associated Press via the Australian Associated Press.
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