It’s a story that has followed her for almost a year. During the Miss France 2021 ceremony, where she was crowned First runner-up by Amandine Petit, April benayoum was the victim of violent anti-Semitic insults following the dissemination of his portrait which evoked his Israeli-Italian origins. Faced with the surge of hatred poured out on her, the pretty blonde had then wasted no time to lodge a complaint. After investigation eight Internet users were arrested, four men and four women aged between 20 and 58 years.
Their trial took place on September 22 in the presence of April Benayoum, who was accompanied by Sylvie Tellier for the occasion, and the verdict has been rendered this Wednesday, November 3 in Paris. Of the eight people worried, seven of them were eventually convicted to pay fines of 300 to 800 euros for posting anti-Semitic tweets, an official press release informs us. They thus escape the two-month suspended prison sentence required by the prosecution for “public insults committed on the grounds of origin, ethnicity, race or religion“.
They will also have to pay 1 euro in damages to the complainant as well as to several associations which had become civil parties, such as the International League against Racism and Anti-Semitism (LICRA) or the Union of Jewish Students of France (UEFJ). Four of the convicts will also have to follow a two-day “citizenship course”. The eighth defendant was “released by the criminal court which considered that his tweet did not target Ms. Benayoum”.
Very saddened by these virulent attacks, April Benayoum nevertheless did not let herself be defeated. Since the election of Miss France, she has had a series of professional projects and has built a great career as a model. In addition, she is not done with beauty pageants since she is the one who is going represent France at the new Miss World edition which will take place from November 21 to December 16, 2021 in Puerto Rico. Amandine Petit had for her part participated in Miss Universe in May, election where she had finished in the Top 21.