A social media influencer in France has seen justice served after 28 individuals were sentenced to jail terms as long as 18 months for harassing her online. This is the largest cyberbullying case in France to date.
A French court convicted the defendants of harassing influencer Magali Berdah, following a campaign by rapper Booba targeting “deceitful influencers.” The harassment took a significant toll on Berdah’s mental well-being, according to the Paris court.
Magali Berdah, a leading French influencer in fashion and lifestyle, also runs Shauna Events, a company that helps manage the careers of other social media stars. Despite her success, Berdah became the target of a vicious cyberbullying campaign.
Her lawyers claim rapper Booba, real name is Élie Yaffa, fuelled the online harassment by encouraging a wave of hateful messages.
The French influencer is widely known as the “queen of influencers,”. She celebrated the court’s decision as a “beautiful victory.” This comes after she bravely shared in court the devastating impact of the cyberbullying, stating it drove her “to the brink of despair.
“My life was destroyed for two years because of this,” she said. “Finally, I’ve been recognised as a victim,” she said.
Her lawyers said the convictions showed “no one is safe behind their keyboard”.
Ms Berdah has her own legal woes. She is set to appear in court to face money laundering charges. Furthermore, her company Shauna Events is under investigations for fraud.
Booba is facing a separate trial and denies aggravated harassment. Those charged alongside the rapper are of varying ages of between 20 to 49 years.
They were handed jail terms of between 4 to 18 months. Notably, some of the jail terms are suspended. In addition to jail time, the defendants were fined €700 each (around £598) and collectively ordered to pay Ms. Berdah €54,000 (around £56,100) in compensation for the emotional distress caused by their actions.