Trial begins in case of alleged cyber bullying against Brigitte Macron in France

Ten French citizens accused of spreading conspiracy theories and sexist abuse about French First Lady Brigitte Macron are set to stand trial this week in Paris.

The group allegedly participated in a campaign of online harassment against Macron, circulating false claims about her gender and relationship with President Emmanuel Macron. Prosecutors say the defendants also made repeated “malicious remarks” about the couple’s 24-year age gap, per the BBC.

If convicted, the ten defendants face up to two years in prison. Those appearing in court include a local elected official, a gallery owner, a teacher, and two independent journalists, according to French media reports.

Two of the individuals, the self-described journalist Natacha Rey and internet personality Amandine Roy, were previously found guilty of slander in 2023 for alleging that Brigitte Macron was not a real person and that her brother, Jean-Michel Trogneux, had changed gender and assumed the identity.

The women were later acquitted on appeal when judges ruled their statements did not meet the legal definition of defamation. The Macrons and Trogneux have since appealed that acquittal.

The conspiracy theory that Macron is transgender has circulated online since Emmanuel Macron’s 2017 presidential campaign. Last July, the Macrons filed a lawsuit against Candace Owens, accusing her of ignoring evidence disproving the rumor and “platforming known conspiracy theorists and proven defamers.”

Their lawyer, Tom Clare, told the BBC’s Fame Under Fire podcast that Brigitte Macron found the ordeal “incredibly upsetting” and said it had become a “distraction” for the president. “It is incredibly upsetting to think that you have to go and subject yourself, to put this type of proof forward,” Clare said.

President Macron said the lawsuit was about defending his wife’s dignity and his own reputation, accusing Owens of pushing falsehoods “with the aim of causing harm, in the service of an ideology and with established connections to far-right leaders.”

Brigitte Macron, now 71, met her future husband when she was a teacher at his high school in Amiens, where she taught literature and directed the drama club.

Emmanuel Macron was a 15-year-old student at the time, and the two reportedly grew close while working together on school theatre productions. Their relationship developed years later, after Macron had graduated and moved to Paris. The couple married in 2007, when she was 54 and he was 29.