PARIS — A French alleged neo-Nazi sympathizer was sentenced to two years in prison after making threats online and was suspected of wanting to target the Olympic torch relay, authorities say.
The Paris public prosecutor’s office says in a statement the 19-year-old man was convicted after a swift trial overnight Friday on charges of sharing bomb-making instructions on social media, posts inciting hate and death threats as well as posts with personal information that put people at risk.
The man — detained on Wednesday morning at his home in the Alsace region of eastern France — ran a group called “French Aryan division” on the social media channel Telegram, the statement says.
The prosecutor’s office says his alleged comments that triggered the probe by its unit, dedicated to fighting online hate, didn’t specifically target the Paris Olympics, which kick off with a high-security opening ceremony on Friday.
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