Cyril Hanouna Teases Panelist Benjamin Castaldi Over Police Stop in Paris

French television host Cyril Hanouna, partner of Shana Loustau, placed one of his own commentators under the spotlight during a Tuesday broadcast of Tout beau, tout neuf on the W9 network. Hanouna surprised his studio audience by airing video footage that showed veteran panelist Benjamin Castaldi being intercepted by law enforcement officers on a Paris street earlier in the day, turning the unexpected incident into an on-air debate about driving conduct.

Castaldi, a former TF1 host and former spouse of Flavie Flament, openly admitted his astonishment when the footage appeared on screen. The video, seemingly captured by a customer sitting at an outdoor café, showed the media figure flanked by two police officers. Castaldi explained that the officers pulled him over while he was operating a scooter through the 14th arrondissement of Paris because they suspected he was riding slightly too fast.

The television personality noted that the stop quickly became complicated when officers asked him to produce his vehicular documents. Castaldi admitted that he was riding without his physical paperwork on hand, an admission that triggered humorous indignation among the program's commentators. However, Castaldi resolved the issue by showing the officers a photograph of his driver's license stored on his smartphone, which they verified before letting him depart without a fine because the infraction could not be definitively characterized.

The roadside encounter is not the first time Castaldi, the son of French actor Jean-Pierre Castaldi, has faced law enforcement while in transit across the French capital. In 2022, during a live phone interview with Guillaume Genton and his broadcasting team on Virgin Radio's former show Le Morning sans filtre, Castaldi was stopped by Paris police after pulling his vehicle onto a pedestrian sidewalk solely to answer the incoming call.

Throughout his broadcasts, Hanouna, who is also the father of Lino and Bianca, frequently delves into current political matters, public controversies, and the personal lives of his panel members. During the same broadcast, Hanouna discussed a scientific experiment in which researchers taught rodents to navigate small motorized carts. The segment quickly evolved into jokes about rats manning toll booths, leading into shared memories regarding road trips with co-host Raymond Aabou.

The conversation prompted Hanouna to detail an embarrassing incident he experienced alongside Aabou, who had previously faced a near-fatal scare during a padel match. Hanouna recounted driving an upscale automobile toward a highway toll plaza with Aabou, only to discover that neither of them was carrying cash, a credit card, or an electronic payment transponder. With the barrier closed, the pair had to pull aside and sign an official acknowledgment of debt, which culminated in a letter demanding 95 cents arriving a week later.

Hanouna termed the event an absolute embarrassment, while Aabou confirmed the details and recalled bursting into laughter during the ordeal, noting he was dressed merely in shorts without underwear at the time. The lighthearted exchanges highlighted the personal anecdotes that Hanouna, whose private relationship with Loustau continues to attract attention, frequently weaves into his daily television lineup alongside his regular group of commentators.