Far-Right French Group Leaders Jailed for Anti-Migrant Operation in Alps

The Correctional Court of Gap, in the French Alps, sentenced "Génération identitaire" to the maximum fine of 75,000 euros and three of its leaders to six months in prison, reports AFP.

The convicted are named Clément Gandelin, alias Galant, 24 years old, President of "Génération identitaire", Romain Espino, 26 years old, its Spokesperson and active Organizer of the movement, Damien Lefèvre, alias Rieu, 29 years old. They were also ordered to pay a 2,000 euro fine, and are deprived of their civil, civil and family rights for five years, specifies the same source. They were prosecuted for activities carried out under conditions likely to create confusion in the public mind with the exercise of a public function.

Indeed, "Génération identitaire" had set up, on April 21, 2018, a vast operation at the Col de l’Échelle, a crossing point for many migrants in the Alps.

According to the account of the facts, about a hundred people dressed in the same blue jacket had mobilized with two helicopters, a giant banner, and a "symbolic border" materialized in the snow by plastic fences. In the following weeks, the far-right activists had announced the interception of migrants and investigations into smugglers, details the same source.

After the sentence, Pierre-Vincent Lambert, the defendants’ lawyer, announced that he would appeal the judgment.