The man accused of slapping French President Emmanuel Macron during a visit to southeastern France earlier this week will be brought up for immediate trial on Thursday, authorities said.
The man, identified as Damien T., 28, has admitted during hearings hitting the head of state and pronouncing words denouncing politics, public prosecutor Alex Perrin said in a statement.
Footage circulating on social media showed the incident in Tain-l Hermitage, around 90 kilometres south of Lyon.
Macron, who was on a visit to a Drôme hospitality school, was struck on Tuesday in the face while shaking hands with a member of the public.
French President Emmanuel Macron has vowed to continue greeting crowds during his travels despite being slapped in the face, sparking debate Wednesday about whether such walkabouts are wise in a fraught political climate and what the assault symbolized for the country.
The man who slapped French President Emmanuel Macron in the face on Tuesday will spend the next four months behind bars. A court in Valence Thursday sentenced 28-year-old Damien.
Macron slap suspects accused of far-right links
Two suspects are still in custody as investigators uncovered alleged far-right links. One of the accused was found to have a copy of Adolf Hitler s Mein Kampf at their home.
Macron, shortly before the slapping incident, had been meeting restaurant owners in the town of Valence.
Police found a copy of Adolf Hitler s
Mein Kampf and firearms at the home of one of the two men arrested after French President Emmanuel Macron was slapped in the face.
A suspect, identified only as Arthur C, was taken into custody on suspicion of having filmed the moment another man, Damien Tarel, allegedly hit Macron on Tuesday.