A total of 145 people in France were reportedly assaulted with syringes while attending a country-wide street music festival over the weekend.
The festival, called Fete de la Musique, took place at locations across the country and attracted millions of festival-goers, according to French media such as
and
. Overall, there were 12 arrests related to the syringe attacks, the interior ministry said.
On June 21, Paris firefighters said they were receiving a large number of calls related to high attendance at the festival in
. According to Paris police, there were 13 cases of people saying they were pricked in the capital,
. It was not revealed by authorities what the contents of the syringes were; however, the interior ministry said some victims were taken to hospital for toxicology tests. French publication
that investigations were opened after three victims, a
including an 18-year-old boy and 15-year-old girl, became ill.
Meanwhile, François Grosdidier, the mayor of Metz, a city in northeastern France, said there had been a “call for syringe assaults” on social media in the major cities where the festival was taking place. At 9:15 p.m., Grosdidier said the first such assault was reported in Metz. The victims were approximately 15 young girls between the ages of 14 and 20 years old.
Using video footage of a suspect, police were able to identify and arrest him. Grosdidier said he hopes the investigation will help authorities identify other assailants.
Grosdidier also said that police arrested an individual who slapped a young girl and broke up some fights in the area, likely provoked by alcohol consumption. He posted a series of photos from the festival that showed him speaking with authorities.
French media such as
as well as The Guardian corroborated Grosdidier’s point that there were calls on social media platforms to assault festival-goers with syringes.
The attacks were wide-ranging, with four arrests in the southwestern city of
and roughly
. In the Normandy region, several women in Évreux and Rouen were reportedly pricked with needles,
. Investigations were opened and it was not immediately clear if the syringes had any substances inside them.
In the city of Tours,
that there were 13 people who were victims of a syringe attack. There were also attacks reported in the
northeastern city of Thionville and commune of Sarreguemines
.
In Vesoul, a commune in eastern France, the local trade association posted
.
“For several months, numerous cases of syringe attacks have been reported throughout France, often during festivals or soirées,” the caption of the post said in French, adding that the syringes could be filled with dangerous substances. A video accompanying the post said that those pricked with a syringe may feel suddenly ill or suffer from dizziness. It urged festival-goers to be vigilant.
There were more than 370 people detained throughout the festival weekend across France for a variety of charges, according to Agence France-Presse.
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