French citizens donate to aid small businesses after riots

Hundreds of thousands of euros have been donated to support small businesses looted in France following riots, though many of these campaigns are fraudulent.

The riots on 17/10 left a trail of destruction, with small business owners like Hassan Robiul facing significant losses. Images of Robiul, owner of a phone and computer store on Magenta avenue in Paris, sitting with his head in his hands on his shop's steps, garnered widespread attention online. He reported that goods worth over 200,000 EUR (approximately 233,000 USD) were destroyed and stolen. Robiul had only purchased the store four months prior.

In response, a neighbor launched a fundraising campaign to help Robiul recover. By the morning of 19/10, donations exceeded 85,000 EUR (approximately 99,000 USD). The campaign gained rapid traction after journalist Remy Buisine live-streamed the store's condition on social media, urging community support.

Another affected business, Je suis a velo, a store in Paris's 2nd district, posted a video seeking assistance after its premises were damaged. The video garnered 3.7 million views, leading to more than 9,000 EUR (approximately 10,500 USD) in donations for the shop.

Alain Di Crescenzo, President of the French Chambers of Commerce and Industry network, estimated that more than 2,000 businesses and stores were directly impacted by the incidents.

However, the surge in mutual aid campaigns also created opportunities for individuals to exploit the situation for personal gain. In Nice, a video showing a manager calmly defending his Micromania store from rioters went viral. Online users then edited his image into comic book characters and collectible cards.

Subsequently, two fundraising campaigns were launched in the manager's name, raising 6,000 EUR and 2,000 EUR, respectively. The organizer of the second campaign claimed to have met the manager and his spouse, asserting the store faced closure because insurance would not cover all damages.

However, on 18/10, the manager posted a video announcing he was not associated with these funds.

"No one has contacted me about fundraising", the manager stated, "these campaigns were not initiated by me. Please steer clear of these scams".

According to Le Monde, fraudulent fundraising campaigns frequently emerge after major events, capitalizing on the public's desire to help. On the Leetchi platform alone, more than 20 accounts were created in the name of assisting the Micromania store manager, and nearly 50 campaigns falsely claimed to support Hassan Robiul. Most of these have not received donations from users.