2023-10-23 18:28:17
“The throne of Louis XIV is going to jump. See you. Evacuate. » It was with this worrying message that a 37-year-old man caused the evacuation of the Palace of Versailles last Thursday. A false bomb threat, like the tourist site has experienced almost daily since October 14 – the 7th and latest was Sunday October 22 – for which he has just been found guilty by the courts.
The thirty-year-old was arrested on Friday, the day after his false alarm. The Versailles criminal court sentenced him this Monday to eight months’ suspended imprisonment. “I’m sorry, sorry for the people and the castle,” muttered at the end this individual being treated for schizophrenia.
The defendant admitted to making a phone call on Thursday, after hearing about the previous evacuations on TV news channels. Online with the operator, he declared that “the throne of Louis XIV is going to blow”, asking to evacuate the premises. A call he made on his father’s phone, which he answered when the police called him back, while refusing to reveal his identity.
Evacuations “so as not to take any risks”
But the consequence was immediate, the castle and the police removed around 11,000 visitors present in the royal domain at that time. “It is the most visited monument in the department (up to 15,000 people per day) and to which we obviously pay particular attention,” the departmental directorate of public security (DDSP) of Yvelines told Le Parisien. So much so that evacuations are systematic “so as not to take any risks”.
The psychiatric expertise revealed that the schizophrenic individual had paranoid tendencies and that, according to him, he had not taken his treatment at the time of the events. He could nevertheless be tried in immediate appearance. “He did not think for two seconds about the media issue, about Arras and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, according to his lawyer, Me Mandine Blondin. He is someone fragile, sick. »
His probationary suspension is also accompanied by an obligation to provide psychiatric care. There will also be an obligation to compensate the Palace of Versailles, whose lawyer has requested a civil referral in order to assess the damage.
100,000 to 150,000 euros loss in one day
If no figures have yet been put forward, Me Cyrille Mayoux mentioned “an order of magnitude of 100,000 to 150,000 euros” of loss for Thursday alone. The thirty-year-old assured for his part that he was going to start putting money aside to compensate the establishment. A new hearing to decide the amount of damages has been set for February 26, 2024.
Outside of the castle, the effects of the multiple bomb threats are also beginning to be felt by tourism professionals on whose activity they largely depend. Since mid-last week, guides and tour operators have been expressing hesitation and even initial postponements regarding the arrival of foreign tourists, particularly Chinese and Americans.
“The Americans are very sensitive about security issues. This inevitably has a negative effect,” warned on Wednesday the boss of a company specializing in private visits to the castle whose “clientele comes largely from the United States.” Contacted this Monday, the Palace of Versailles did not respond to our requests.
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