Cyber-harassment of the widow of the gendarme killed in Mougins: an investigation opened after her poignant comments about the French state

‘France killed my husband through its inadequacy, its laxity and its excessive tolerance’, Harmonie Comyn, the widow of Warrant Officer Eric Comyn, said with palpable emotion at a ceremony in Mandelieu-La Napoule on 28 August, just two days after the tragic disappearance of her husband, who was fatally struck during a roadside checkpoint in Mougins (Alpes-Maritimes).

These accusatory words, denouncing the State’s attitude to repeat offenders, triggered a wave of cyber-harassment against the widow on social networks, leading the Draguignan public prosecutor’s office to open an investigation, confirmed on 4 September by H24 NEWS.

The 39-year-old man responsible for the gendarme’s death has a lengthy criminal record, with 10 convictions, including several for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Following his indictment, he was remanded in custody.

The public prosecutor at the Aix-en-Provence court of appeal, Franck Rastoul, firmly warned that hate speech posted online would be severely punished. ‘Freedom of expression can never be used as a pretext to escape justice, nor to spread hatred against institutions and those who serve them,’ he said.