Teen plotting attacks on women charged in France's first ‘incel' case
PARIS - An 18-year-old French man suspected of planning attacks on women has been charged in the country's first case of a terror plot linked to the misogynist 'incel' movement, officials said on July 2.
According to a source close to the investigation, the suspect, Timothy G., was arrested on June 27 by the DGSI domestic intelligence agency near a public high school in the south-eastern city of Saint-Etienne.
According to sources close to the case, the suspect was arrested with two knives in his bag and identified himself as a member of the 'incel', or involuntary celibate, subculture.
The 'incel' movement is an internet subculture rife with misogyny, with men tending to blame women and feminism for their romantic failings.
They typically target those who they see as attractive or sexually active women.
The National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor's Office (PNAT) said that an investigation had been opened on July 1 'against an 18-year-old man claiming to be part of the 'incel' movement'.
The man has been charged with terrorist conspiracy with a view to preparing one or more crimes against persons, the PNAT said.
Top stories
Swipe. Select. Stay informed.
Singapore Singapore and Cambodia to expand collaboration in renewable energy, carbon markets and agri-trade
World Trump announces Vietnam trade deal with 20% import tariff
Singapore From camping to mentorship, Singapore Scouts mark 115th anniversary of the youth movement
Singapore Ong Beng Seng's court hearing rescheduled one day before he was expected to plead guilty
World Sean 'Diddy' Combs convicted on prostitution counts but cleared of more serious charges
Singapore Teen, 17, to be charged with allegedly trespassing on MRT tracks
Singapore Granddaughter of Hin Leong founder O.K. Lim fails to keep 3 insurance policies from creditors' reach
Singapore Man on trial for raping drunken woman after offering to drive her and her friend home
The involvement of anti-terror prosecutors appears to indicate that French authorities recognise this form of gender-based violence as terrorism.
'Suffering' teenager
On July 1 evening, Timothy G. appeared before a judge who remanded him in custody.
He looked shy and had an almost hairless face and a slender build, according to an AFP journalist.
His lawyer Maria Snitsar described him as 'a teenager who is suffering, not a fighter preparing for action'.
According to one of the sources close to the case, the teenager, who wanted to become an engineer, was a fan of misogynist videos on social media, particularly TikTok.
Another source close to the case said that this is the first time the PNAT has been called upon to investigate a man who exclusively identifies as part of the 'incel' subculture.
The concept had previously appeared only marginally in at least two cases handled by the anti-terrorism prosecutor's office.
The PNAT announcement was also a sign of changing attitudes in France.
A judicial source told AFP in late 2023 that the PNAT had long refused to take up cases linked to the movement, believing that 'these mass killing plans were not for them'.
Netflix hit 'Adolescence' has sparked widespread debate about the toxic and misogynistic influences to which young boys are exposed online.
The hard-hitting show is to be shown in UK and French schools, officials have said.
In 2022, the US Secret Service's National Threat Assessment Center (NTAC) highlighted the threat posed by 'misogynistic extremism'.
In the United Kingdom, MI5, the domestic intelligence service, has warned of links between 'incels' and other violent conspiracy movements.
In 2014, an American man, Elliot Rodger, who had professed frustration over his virginity and women rejecting him, killed six people, including three women, in California before committing suicide.
In 2018, Alek Minassian, a man claiming to have been part of the movement, drove a rented van onto a busy Toronto sidewalk, killing 11, mostly women.
He was sentenced to life in prison for those murders, but was never charged with terrorism. AFP
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
20 minutes ago
- Straits Times
North Korean detained after crossing land border: Seoul military
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox North Koreans are typically handed over to Seoul's intelligence agency for screening when they arrive in the South. SEOUL - A North Korean who crossed the heavily fortified land border into the South has been detained and taken into custody, Seoul's military said on July 4. The North Korean managed to cross the Military Demarcation Line (MDL) in the midwestern part of the Demilitarised Zone (DMZ) on July 3, Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said. The MDL is the de-facto border , which runs through the middle of the DMZ - the border area separating the two Koreas, which is one of the most heavily mined places on earth. 'The military identified the individual near the MDL, conducted tracking and surveillance,' the JCS said in a statement. It then 'successfully carried out a standard guiding operation to secure custody,' it added. Seoul's military said 'relevant authorities' will investigate the detailed circumstances of the incident. North Koreans are typically handed over to Seoul's intelligence agency for screening when they arrive in the South. The incident comes after a wooden boat carrying four North Koreans drifted into waters south of the de-facto maritime border in May. Another North Korean defected to the South across the de-facto border in the Yellow Sea in 2024, arriving on Gyodong island off the peninsula's west coast near the border between the Koreas. Tens of thousands of North Koreans have fled to South Korea since the peninsula was divided by war in the 1950s, with most going overland to neighbouring China first, then entering a third country such as Thailand before finally making it to the South. Defections across the land border that divides the peninsula are rare. The number of successful escapes dropped significantly from 2020 after the North sealed its borders - purportedly with shoot-on-sight orders along the land frontier with China - to prevent the spread of Covid-19. South Korea's President Lee Jae Myung, who took office in June, has vowed a more dovish approach towards Pyongyang compared with his hawkish predecessor Yoon Suk Yeol. 'Politics and diplomacy must be handled without emotion and approached with reason and logic,' Mr Lee said on July 3. 'Completely cutting off dialogue is really a foolish thing to do.' AFP
Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
Indonesian police seek to polish image with new video platform amid public distrust
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox The Indonesian National Police have launched several digital initiatives aimed at improving their public image, including a new video-sharing platform called Policetube. However, critics argue that these efforts fall short of addressing the deeper issues underlying the erosion of public trust. The Policetube platform, unveiled recently by the force's Public Relations Division, showcases institutional achievements and public service messages. Modelled after Youtube, the site features a dark-gray interface with gold colours, aligned with the police's visual identity.
Straits Times
2 hours ago
- Straits Times
Sean ‘Diddy' Combs' winning defence: He's abusive, but he's not a racketeer
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox On July 2, Combs was found not guilty of sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy – the two most severe charges against him. NEW YORK - Over 28 days of testimony, federal prosecutors called witnesses who gave compelling accounts of harrowing violence, acts of intimidation and voyeuristic sex in hotel rooms with oceans of baby oil. Sean Combs, they said, was the ringleader. Investigators detailed for the jury raids at Combs' mansions in Miami Beach, Florida, and Los Angeles, where they carted away several AR-15-style guns and illicit narcotics. People who worked for Combs, the music mogul known as Puff Daddy or Diddy, testified that they had procured drugs for him or had witnessed his physical abuse of a former girlfriend. In the face of this evidence, the defence presented a case that lasted less than half an hour. Combs declined to testify, and no other witnesses were called. The rapid turnaround was startling after six weeks of trial. But in retrospect, the defence's compact case was a sign that Combs' lawyers felt confident the government had not done enough to convince a federal jury that Combs was, as charged, the boss of a criminal enterprise. 'We take full responsibility that there was domestic violence in this case,' Ms Teny Geragos, one of Combs' lawyers, said on the first day of the trial. But the defence vehemently rejected the idea that the violence was used to compel women into sex acts. On July 2, Combs was found not guilty of sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy – the two most severe charges against him. While Combs' convictions on two lesser counts of transportation to engage in prostitution could result in his spending years in prison, sex-trafficking or racketeering convictions would have carried potential life sentences. The racketeering conspiracy statute under which Combs was charged was designed to combat organised crime syndicates such as the Mafia, though it has been expanded into cases involving sexual offenses, as with R. Kelly and cult leader Keith Raniere. To prove its racketeering conspiracy charge, the government had to persuade jurors that Combs was part of a criminal enterprise – one that had a structure that continued over time, that had committed crimes and that was not a casual assortment of people who knew one another, but rather a grouping that shared a mission. NYTIMES
