French authorities detain 12 people after 145 revelers across the nation reported being in pricked with syringes during the Fete de la Musique national music festival.

French police have detained 12 suspects after 145 people reported being pricked with syringes during the country’s annual street music festival, officials said Sunday.

Millions of people took to the streets across France on Saturday evening for the Fete de la Musique, with authorities reporting “unprecedented crowds” in Paris.

Before the party, posts on social media had called for women to be targeted during the festivities.

  • FauxPseudo @lemmy.worldEnglish
    3210·
    12 hours ago

    This is a panic that has come and gone multiple times even just during my lifetime. I remember the first time I heard about it was visitors to neighboring Tijuana with HIV infected blood on the 80s. Never once has it actually been confirmed to have happened.

    These are 145 self reports. Nothing confirmed. No video evidence.

    Plenty of resources available for this panic.

    • perestroika@lemm.eeEnglish
      11·
      7 hours ago

      This is a real phenomenon, first widely reported in 2022. Due to some reason, it has resurged.

      Arrests in France after scores report being attacked with syringes at street music festival

      Millions of people took to the streets across France on Saturday evening for the Fête de la Musique, with authorities reporting “unprecedented crowds” in Paris. The feminist influencer Abrège Soeur warned online before the festival that calls had been made on social media for women to be targeted with syringes. It was not certain where such posts would have been made or by whom.

      The interior ministry said 145 victims across the country had reported being stabbed with needles during outdoor music events across the country. Paris police reported 13 cases in the capital. Officials did not say if these were cases of so-called needle spiking with date-rape drugs such as Rohypnol or GHB, used by attackers to render victims confused or unconscious and vulnerable to sexual assault. “Some victims were taken to hospital for toxicological tests,” the ministry said.

      In Paris, investigations were opened after three people, including a 15-year-old girl and an 18-year-old male, reported being stabbed in separate incidents across Paris, prosecutors said. All three reported feeling unwell. Across France, 12 suspects have been arrested, the interior ministry said. Among them were four people in the south-western city of Angoulême suspected of having targeted about 50 victims, a police source said.

      /…/ There was a wave of reports in 2022 about alleged syringe attacks against women and men in clubs, bars, music events and even theatres. The government put out messages at the time for people going out at night to be vigilant and advising them that they should go immediately to the police and also have a toxicology test if they thought they had been drugged by a syringe prick.

      Since another person linked to a story about this on Twitter, of all things, I did some background checking. Does not look like a “panic”, but a new genre of crime.

      The mayor of the city of Metz, identifiable, writes on social media (Instagram) confirming the occurrence. Confirming that arrests have been made. Other sources (among them old media outlets like the Guardian, see above link) report about it.

      Incitement allegedly occurred over social media. It will be investigated where it occurred. Victims have been sent to toxicology. It will be investigated what was injected, if anything. Some victims reported feeling unwell.

      Guess: in a crowd, it is relatively easy to anonymously attack someone and hope to leave little evidence. However, this time, it has been claimed that some assailants were detained on the spot. There will be information confirming or denying this pretty soon.

    • Wanderer@lemm.eeEnglish
      21·
      8 hours ago

      Last time I heard about this it was all over Facebook and shit.

      Then the government, police and drs came out and said their was no evidence and when you think about it it doesn’t make any sense.

      Honestly how many women have you seen smash way way too many drinks and claim they got spiked. No you weigh fuck all, you were smashing drinks, thats why you can’t stand. We’ve all drank too much.