Mediawan Employee Arrested Following Violent Protests Outside CNews Offices in Paris
An investigation into a Telegram group reveals coordinated threats and details surrounding the recent demonstrations in Paris.
A series of violent protests outside the Paris offices housing the newsrooms of CNews, Europe 1, and the Journal du Dimanche (JDD) led to the arrest of 21 individuals, including a video editor employed by Mediawan Kids & Family. The company is part of a production group founded by Xavier Niel, Matthieu Pigasse, and Pierre-Antoine Capton.
The incident occurred on the morning of October 17, when approximately one hundred masked individuals dressed in black gathered outside the building located in the 15th arrondissement of Paris. The assailants overturned security barriers and caused property damage before law enforcement intervened to disperse the crowd and make arrests.
Among those detained was Jean-Baptiste Vernhes, a senior editor at Mediawan Kids & Family, according to information obtained by L'Infiltré. Vernhes had previously been linked to an environmental protest on the Simone-de-Beauvoir footbridge in Paris earlier in the year. Authorities note that an arrest does not presume guilt and that all individuals remain presumed innocent until proven otherwise.
Investigations into the unrest revealed that the gathering had been coordinated through a Telegram messaging group comprising more than 3,000 members. The channel featured explicit calls to action, including instructions to target the media building and burn its facilities. Private home addresses of notable figures, alongside threats against public officials, were also shared within the chat.
The Telegram group is co-administered by Ritchy Thibault, a former collaborator with the La France insoumise movement. Thibault is currently held in pretrial detention following previous allegations related to calls for public unrest. Although he did not actively participate in the inflammatory conversations leading up to the October 17 events, the platform served as a central hub for sharing instructions, pillage guidelines, and targets.
Following the intervention of law enforcement and the arrest of 21 suspects, participants in the Telegram group continued to exchange messages celebrating the unrest. In the wake of these developments, authorities and media organizations continue to examine digital footprints and video surveillance to identify other individuals involved in the demonstrations.