The judge said the defendants had caused a “deterioration” of Brigitte Macron’s “physical and mental health”.
Published October 27, 2025
Ten people are on trial in a Paris court for online harassment of France’s first lady Brigitte Macron, the latest case related to baseless claims about her gender.
The defendants, eight men and two women between the ages of 41 and 60, are accused of cyber-harassment, targeting the first lady by claiming she is a transgender woman who was born male and calling her 24-year age difference with French President Emmanuel Macron “pedophilia.”
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The trial comes after the Macrons, who were absent from the two-day hearing that began on Monday, filed a defamation lawsuit in the United States in late July.
The judge said the defendants’ posts quickly gained attention online and were viewed tens of thousands of times, causing a “deterioration” of the first lady’s “physical and mental health.”
Seven of the defendants appeared in court on Monday, and three others were represented by lawyers.
Delphine Jugus, 51, known as Amandine Roy, who describes herself as a medium and author, is believed to have played a major role in spreading rumors about the first lady’s gender after publishing a four-hour video on her YouTube channel in 2021.
Aurélien Poisson-Atran, 41, known on social media as Zoe Sagan, is among the defendants and has extensive ties to conspiracy theory circles, whose X account was suspended last year.
Others include elected officials, teachers, and computer scientists.
The Macrons have long been plagued by conspiracy theories that Brigitte, 72, was born as a man named Jean-Michel Trogneux and later adopted the name Brigitte as a transgender woman.
Jean-Michel Trogneux is the name of Brigitte’s younger brother. The pair won a defamation lawsuit against Juguss and another woman, and were sentenced by a Paris court to fines and damages for spreading the complaint.
The Paris Court of Appeal overturned the decision in July. Brigitte and her brother then appealed this decision to the French Supreme Court.
This claim has been amplified by far-right and conspiracy theorist circles not only in France but also in the United States, where transgender rights have become a major target of the American culture war.
Lawyers for the Macrons in the US lawsuit said the couple would seek “substantial” damages from Candace Owens, a conservative influencer with around 4.5 million YouTube subscribers, if she continues to insist that Bridget is a man.
A verdict in the Paris case is likely to be rendered at a later date.
