It’s a file that seemed to come from a time not so long ago but which was very quickly forgotten. Friday morning, a 33-year-old woman was tried before the criminal court of Rennes (Ille-et-Vilaine) for “use of forged documents”. Justice accused the defendant of having provided a false vaccination pass in August 2021, in the hope of being able to travel by plane. That summer, the French government implemented a health pass which required having a complete vaccination schedule to enter public places such as bars, restaurants, cinemas, gyms. An obligation that some had tried to circumvent by purchasing fake health passes that could be found on the Web or from certain anti-vax doctors.
This is precisely what the Ille-et-Vilaine gendarmes suspected when they opened an investigation in the summer of 2021 against this resident of Saint-Erblon. Called to the suspect’s home for acts of violence committed by his companion, the gendarmes placed the man in police custody. During the interrogation, the latter explained that the argument had broken out against a backdrop of rivalry around a trip to the West Indies planned by his partner with their daughter. In the epidemic context, he was not keen for them to take the plane and then ratted out his ex, explaining that she had paid 300 euros to get a fake health pass. The case could have ended there if a new preliminary investigation had not been opened.
To verify the authenticity of the companion’s accusations, the Ille-et-Vilaine gendarmes had deployed means which may seem excessive, in particular retracing the history of the accused’s movements by spying on the data on his mobile phone. “You were not in Villejuif neither for your first nor for your second injection. Your pass is a fake,” recalls the president, referring to the data from the fake vaccination pass. The defendant acquiesces but assures that she was vaccinated in Rennes. Where ? “At the Villejean vaccinodrome without appointment”. But when ? And where is the evidence? Silence. The accused speaks of “coincidences” and struggles to convince the assembly. Especially since questionable withdrawals were spotted on his bank accounts, perhaps to pay for the famous false pass.
His lawyer pleads “an administrative error”
Even before the opening of the debates, her lawyer had tried to invalidate the documents provided by the gendarmes, considering that the investigative actions were excessive and denouncing the violation of his client’s private life. But how can we explain this false vaccination pass presented by her client and containing false vaccination information? “It is entirely possible to suffer an administrative error, especially in the context of a global pandemic,” recalls the council. Before leaving the bar, the defendant will assure “that she is innocent” to the magistrates who faced her. The decision was reserved until October 6.