A Paris court sentenced French influencer Ilan M., known as “Amine Mojito,” to 6 months in prison for staging viral videos that showed him faking syringe attacks on strangers. The ruling followed a surge of reported needle “spiking” incidents that had already stoked public fear.
The Paris Criminal Court handed down a 12-month sentence, with half suspended. The 27-year-old was also fined about $1,760 and banned from owning or carrying a weapon for three years.
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He posted the video in June ahead of France’s annual World Music Day festival. It showed him pretending to inject people with an empty syringe while filming their terrified reactions.
“I had the very bad idea of doing these pranks by imitating what I saw on the internet, in Spain, in Portugal,” Mojito said, according to the New York Post. “I didn’t think it could hurt people. That was my mistake, I didn’t think about others, I thought about myself.”
Previous incidents
The prank drew outrage as France was already on edge over reports of real syringe “spiking” incidents at student parties and festivals. Authorities said 145 people, mostly women, reported needle assaults that same weekend, with 12 arrests made across France. Though few toxicology tests confirmed actual injections, the attacks triggered widespread fear and debate about public safety.
Experts told French media the phenomenon often involves fake or empty stings meant to intimidate and cause psychological trauma even without physical harm. Journalist and author Félix Lemaître described the “street injection” panic as an act meant to “sow fear” and restrict women’s sense of safety in public spaces.
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During Fête de la Musique (World Music Day) on June 21–22, 2025, police logged 145 needle-sting reports and made 12 arrests nationwide.
What the court said
Prosecutors argued Mojito’s video, “intentionally or not,” encouraged the wave of syringe reports. Mojito told the court he was “in his own world” and “didn’t think it could hurt people.” He said he copied similar videos from Spain and Portugal.
His lawyer, Marie Claret de Fleurieu, said the ruling “restores a little balance” after what she described as a media overreaction. Mojito’s defense had requested leniency, citing two months spent in pre-trial detention, including time in solitary confinement for safety reasons.
Public reaction
French social media users condemned the leniency of the six-month sentence. Some called the prank “revolting” and warned that such acts could inspire copycats using real syringes. One online commenter said the stunt was “the same as someone running at you with a fake gun and firing a blank.”
