According to the French Interior Ministry, over 100 cases of women being injected with unknown substances were recorded during the nationwide celebration, and 305 people were taken into police custody for various offences. The 44th edition of the festival attracted large crowds across France amid intense heat, and despite no major public safety incidents being reported by police, prosecutors, and firefighters, the night was marked by troubling developments.
The Interior Ministry noted that, in the wake of social media posts inciting people to “attack and inject women during the music festival”, a total of 145 concerned individuals across mainland France and the overseas territories came forward to report such incidents. In the Paris region, 21 cases were logged by the police, including 13 within the capital itself, though authorities were unable to confirm the nature of the substance used.
Several of the affected individuals were taken to hospital for toxicological analysis, the ministry said. In Metz, the mayor, François Grosdidier, confirmed that a number of teenage girls aged between 14 and 20 were among the victims, leading to the arrest of a suspect.
In Paris, prosecutors have opened three separate investigations after a 15-year-old girl, an 18-year-old man, and a woman reported being injected in different locations around the city. All three experienced sudden illness following the incidents.
Authorities across the country made 12 arrests of individuals suspected of carrying out spiking attacks. In Angoulême alone, four people were detained in connection with around 50 potential victims, according to a police source. In eastern France, two men aged 20 and 44 were arrested and placed in custody for assault with a weapon, intoxication, and administering harmful substances. The deputy prosecutor in Metz, Thomas Bernard, stated that 16 young female victims, most of them minors, sought hospital treatment.
Beyond the spiking phenomenon, law enforcement made 371 arrests throughout the night, up from 326 in 2024. In Paris alone, 89 people were arrested (compared to 103 last year), with 305 placed in custody nationwide – substantially higher than the 22 recorded in 2024.
The night also saw violence and injury: 13 members of the security forces were hurt (down from 20 in 2024), while 14 partygoers sustained serious injuries and another 1,477 were lightly injured. Firefighters recorded 51 vehicle fires and 39 blazes on public roads.
By midday Sunday, Paris prosecutors had reported around 100 individuals in custody, mostly in connection with violent offences, particularly assaults on public officials, theft, possession of illegal weapons, vandalism, and illegal street vending. The Les Halles district in central Paris was highlighted as especially problematic, with large, aggressive crowds and two attempted lootings at Nike and Sephora stores.
In a separate incident, five individuals aged in their 20s and one aged 31 were arrested early Sunday morning after dragging a police officer several metres with a quad bike following a failed traffic stop in the 1st arrondissement.
Elsewhere in Paris, a 17-year-old boy was hospitalised in critical condition after being found on the street with a stab wound to the lower abdomen in the 19th arrondissement. Additionally, a 50-year-old homeless man was discovered dead on the forecourt of the Centre Pompidou around 10pm on Saturday, with used syringes reportedly found nearby.
Despite the troubling incidents, Paris Police Prefect Laurent Nuñez stated that no major security breach had occurred. He credited the reinforced security measures for allowing a rapid response throughout the capital, ensuring public safety during an event that drew record-breaking crowds.
French Culture Minister Rachida Dati condemned the evening’s events, saying Paris had become a place where public celebrations too often spiral out of control. She lamented that women can no longer enjoy festivities without being assaulted and that families no longer feel safe bringing their children. Dati, who is positioning herself as a challenger to current Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo, criticised what she described as a “ruined” Fête de la Musique and accused the Paris administration of being completely absent during the night’s events.
