Influencer's free chicken event sparks riots between teens and police in Paris

An influencer event to mark the opening of a Paris restaurant ended in chaos after thousands of people turned up and clashes broke out with police.

The Krousty Sabaidi chain, an Asian fast-food restaurant, had partnered with French influencer Fares Salvatore to promote the opening of their latest eatery in Châtelet-Les Halles.

Salvatore has more than 3.4 million followers on Snapchat and nearly half a million on Instagram.

Fans were told that the first 1,000 customers on Saturday would get a free chicken and rice meal, and a chance for 21 people to be selected to attend the final of Salvatore’s Influence Games in the Dominican Republic.

On the day of the back-to-school event, around 3,000 people descended on the Châtelet les Halles, a railway station.

Clashes broke out between groups of youths and police officers, with projectiles being thrown.

Le Figaro reported that three people were taken into custody during the disorder.

The Police Commissioner’s Office posted a video of some of the behaviour at the event, branding it “pathetic”.

In a post on X, the commissioner’s office wrote: “The #Faressalvatore subscribers’ meetup for his #Influencegame concept turns into chaos. Clashes between youths and #FDO, atmosphere far from the influence game. Simply pathetic…”

Krousty Sabaidi apologised in a statement, saying: “This moment was intended to be a time of sharing, joy and conviviality.

“The attendance far exceeded all our expectations, causing a massive influx and crowd movements in front of our establishment.

“For safety reasons and in strict compliance with the instructions imposed by the prefecture, we had to cancel the event.

“We would like to thank the security services and the police forces for their support and responsiveness. Thanks to rapid and coordinated management, the situation was contained without any major incident.”

The restaurant added that it will maintain its promise to offer 1,000 free meals, and will let fans know when the event will be rearranged.

A French MEP and former police officer branded those who took part in the disturbance “thugs”.

Matthieu Valet, a member of the National Rally party, wrote on X: “Bravo to the police officers who apprehended thugs determined to pick a fight, going so far as to throw projectiles and sow chaos in the street.”

On a post on Snapchat, Fares Salvatore said he was glad the restaurant cancelled the event.