Pierre Ménès filed a complaint for cyberbullying after the end of his collaboration with EA Sports
According to information from Parisian this Thursday, columnist Pierre Ménès filed a complaint last May for cyberbullying, a few days after the end of his collaboration with the video game publisher Electronic Arts Sports. The Meaux prosecutor’s office (Seine-et-Marne) has opened a preliminary investigation. Investigators will hear from the complainant soon.
A year after the end of his collaboration with the publisher Electronic Arts Sports, which develops the famous FIFA video game, Pierre Ménès will soon be heard as part of a preliminary investigation. According to information from Le Parisien, the former Canal + columnist had filed a complaint for cyberbullying on May 25, 2021, following his ousting.
If he initially officiated in the comments of the FIFA 22 game, Pierre Menès was sidelined by EA Sports after the affair linked to the documentary « I’m not a slut, I’m a journalist », where two journalists accused him of sexual assault. According to the principal concerned, the tweets posted by EA Sports to announce the end of the partnership provoked against him « cyberharassment, grossophobic insults and death threats ».
« Mr. Pierre Ménès suffered serious damage because of the irresponsible and reckless behavior of the game company FIFA Electronic Arts », commented Me Arash Derambarsh, Pierre Ménès’ lawyer, in a press release. In a letter dated May 18, 2021, a hospital doctor from Saint-Nazaire warns of the state of health of the columnist, described as someone with a speech « borrowed with great sadness », victim of « anxiety » and « irritability » in particular. Clearly, the mail points to the mental health of Pierre Ménès, disturbed after this wave of cyberbullying on social networks. Another psychologist speaks in December 2021 of “anxio-depressive symptoms”, which “appear to be reactive to a context of moral harassment, as well as slanderous and defamatory remarks of which he explains that he is a victim”.
Menes soon to be tried for a sexual assault case
As a reminder, Pierre Ménès is still targeted by an investigation which intends to shed light after the revelations of the documentary by Marie Portolano. Ménès’ former colleague accuses him of having lifted her skirt and touched her buttocks during a Canal Football Club broadcast in 2016. Undermined at the time by major health problems, Pierre Ménès claims not to remember of these incidents.
Pierre Ménès will also be tried on June 8 before the Paris Criminal Court, for an alleged sexual assault that occurred on November 20, in a box at the Parc des Princes during a meeting between PSG and FC Nantes. Accused by a hostess, Ménès disputes the allegations.
