A 42-year-old Algerian nanny is accused of deliberately putting toxic household products in the family’s food and drinks because the family is Jewish, French media is reporting. 

Toxicology reports reveal that high levels of polyethylene glycol (PEG), a common laxative ingredient, were found in wine, whisky, figs, brandy, grape juice and pasta. According to Le Parisien, the committal order describes the substances as “harmful, even corrosive, and capable of causing serious injuries to the digestive tract.”

Investigators say she also provided a falsified Belgian identity card — another charge in the case — and has been under an order to leave French territory (OQTF) since February 2024. 

After just two months of employment, on January 30, 2024, the family noticed something awry. The mother went to the police station and reported that the wine she drank a few days earlier tasted like cleaning products. The makeup remover she used burned her eyes more than normal and according to reports, the night before after the nanny had left, the mother noticed foam on a bottle of grape juice and a pasta that suddenly smelled overly fragrant. 

Events moved quickly after that, on February 3, the 5-year-old girl told her mother that she had witnessed the nanny transferring a “soapy” product into a bottle of alcohol labeled “Jerusalem.” Two days later the defendant was placed in police custody. The authorities had seized the cleaning products, including a bleach-based toilet cleaner. 

While reports claim that ‘Leila Y.’ initially denied the allegation, during the search of her home she disclosed her motivations to the police, saying “Because they have money and power, I should never have worked for a Jewish woman; she only brought me trouble.”

According to Le Parisien, the investigating magistrate wrote that the statement “conveys antisemitic stereotypes about the relationship to power and money” and shows that the defendant’s remarks were “directly related to the offense.” The committal order states that this is what determined the investigating judge to apply the aggravating circumstance.

Outraged, the American Jewish Committee, an advocacy organization, said in a statement that the case is a “stark reminder that antisemitism is not abstract. It is a real and rising threat that endangers Jews in every part of their lives,” adding that it can reach even the places where Jewish people should feel safest — inside their own homes. 

The defense lawyer, Solange Marle, claims that her client’s motivation was not fueled by antisemitism, and instead by class division. Leila Y. has since retracted her confession. Ms. Marle argues that “the statements made in question remain focused on a class issue and financial resentment” adding that the substances were not found in the children’s drinks. 

Lawyers for the family, Patrick Klugman and Sacha Ghozlan, argue the contrary. Mr. Ghozlan asserts that “this is a particularly well-documented and illuminating case concerning the reality of everyday or pervasive antisemitism.” Mr. Klugman said the October 7 terrorist attack on Israel by Hamas and the ensuing war in the Middle East has ignited antisemitism, arguing that the defendant “acted in a context of passion and propaganda against Israelis and Jews,” and that she “transforms herself into a vigilante of her hatred and attacks this family in their health and privacy.”

The mother of the family told French media that this experience has left “indelible marks” and hopes that the defendant’s expulsion from France will put an end to the fear the family feels. She notes that her middle child, who was 5 at the time, is withdrawn. The oldest child who was away at summer camp during the incident feels guilty, adding “she has nightmares and feels an identity-based fear. She has, unfortunately, understood that she must hide that she is Jewish.”