He had been acquitted at first instance. On Wednesday, the Rennes Court of Appeal sentenced a student from Sciences po Rennes to a six-month suspended prison sentence for slanderous denunciation, reveals West France. The man had denounced an alleged sexual assault which had led to a slander campaign targeting his alleged attacker. He had tried to end his life.
The case caused a stir in the corridors of Sciences po Rennes. At the end of 2018, a student from the prestigious school denounced a sexual assault suffered in a corridor of the establishment. He accused another student of having touched him but initially refused to file a complaint.
Faced with the torrent of hatred, the young man had tried to end his life
The case had taken on a whole new dimension when his alleged attacker had been the victim of a campaign of slander. Leaflets and posters had been posted around the Institute of Political Studies presenting him as “rapist, aggressor, stalker and manipulator”, recalls The Telegram. Faced with this torrent of hatred, the young man had tried to end his life.
The court of appeal considered that the one who was presented as the aggressor was ultimately a victim. And sentenced the student to a six-month suspended prison sentence for his participation in the slander campaign orchestrated by an “anti-sexist” group at the school. His lawyer would have announced his intention to appeal in cassation.