Tourists ripped off with €100 tests in ‘Covid tent’ on Champs-Elysées

Two men in their 20s have been arrested and are in police custody, accused of selling illegal lateral flow antigen tests for €100 each to unsuspecting tourists on the Champs-Elysées in Paris.

The men stand accused after police were alerted to their ‘Covid testing tent’ by a man from Bezons (Val-d’Oise), after his sister was asked for €100 for a test.

The men, from Paris and Charenton-le-Pont (Val-de-Marne), had allegedly put up the tent illegally. They were wearing white medical coats, but could not justify their high prices or qualifications when asked by police.

Italian tourists on the scene also said they had been asked for €100 per test.

Usually, an antigen test will cost around €22 in pharmacies.

Only trained health professionals are permitted to offer tests, and must have been tasked with setting up a testing tent by local authorities.

When questioned, the men were unable to state a company they were working for or show proof they had any authorisation to be there. One of the accused said he had simply been asked to collect the tent marquee, while the other said he had come to help his friend.

The lawyer for one of the accused, Sarah Saldmann, told Le Parisien that her client “was not informed of the illegality of the service” because “it was the first time he was doing tests”.

Alleged victims of the testing have made a formal complaint for fraud. Police confiscated lateral flow tests in a box, and an investigation into the incident is now underway.

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