A scary situation happened during France’s annual Fête de la Musique on June 21, when more than a dozen young women and teenage girls were sent to the hospital after being pricked with syringes.
The festival took place across the country and brought in huge crowds, with over a million people estimated to have attended. But things took a dark turn when 145 women and girls reported being attacked with syringes. Thirteen of those reports came from Paris alone, according to The Guardian.
Most of the victims were teenagers between 14 and 20 years old. Seventeen of them were taken to Mercy Hospital for tests. Authorities haven’t confirmed if any drugs were used in the syringes, but investigations are still ongoing.
So far, police have arrested 12 suspects. Four of them are believed to have targeted as many as 50 people each. One of the victims was just 15 years old and said she felt sick after being pricked in a separate incident in Paris.
Police Chief Laurent Nuñez said that some influencers had warned their followers before the event about possible syringe attacks, after seeing posts online encouraging people to hurt women and girls. He called the situation “extremely serious” and said these online calls were dangerous and foolish.
In the city of Metz, 17 girls were also attacked. The mayor, François Grosdidier, said one suspect was caught on video and arrested. He hopes checking the suspect’s phone will help find out if others were involved.
The festival also saw other violence. Over 370 people were taken into custody, and 14 were seriously hurt, including a 17-year-old who was stabbed. Thirteen police officers were also injured.
Sadly, this isn’t the first time something like this has happened. In recent years, there have been similar syringe attacks at clubs and festivals in France and the UK. In 2022, the British government even put out a report about spiking after cases in places like Nottingham.
