Brigitte Macron launches appeal against acquittal in gender rumours case
On Thursday, the Paris appeals court overturned earlier convictions against the two women for spreading false claims, which went viral online, that Brigitte Macron, 72, had been born a man.
Macron filed a libel complaint against the two women after they posted a YouTube video in December 2021, alleging she had once been a man named Jean-Michel Trogneux – who is actually her brother.
Macron's lawyer Jean Ennochi told French news agency AFP on Sunday that Trogneux too was filing an appeal.
Disinformation targeting Brigitte Macron spreads beyond France
Disinformation on Macron's gender has circulated on social media for years. Her 24-year age difference with President Emmanuel Macron has also attracted much comment.
In the video at the centre of the libel complaint, defendant Amandine Roy, a self-proclaimed spiritual medium, interviewed Natacha Rey, a self-described independent journalist, for four hours on her YouTube channel.
Rey spoke about the 'state-sponsored lie" and "scam" she claimed to have uncovered – that Jean-Michel Trogneux had changed gender to become Brigitte, and then married the future president.
The claim went viral, including among conspiracy theorists in the United States.
Read more on RFI EnglishRead also:France's Brigitte Macron to sue over claims she was born a man
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