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France Investigation

Sex-tape and the city hall: French mayor on trial over blackmail of his deputy

Gaël Perdriau, mayor of the city of Saint-Étienne in south-east France, stood trial on September 22nd for his role in a homophobic blackmail plot against his own deputy, who was secretly filmed with a male escort in an hotel room. In the dock alongside him are three former close associates of the rightwing mayor, who all turned on him during the judicial investigation that led to these proceedings. Antton Rouget reports on the background to an extraordinary trial that is expected to last a week.

22 September 2025 à 16h01

The mayor of Saint-Étienne, Gaël Perdriau, stood trial on September 22nd over his role in an alleged sex-tape blackmail scandal, an extraordinary case that has tainted this city in south-east France for more than three years.

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