French rapper Booba has been in police custody in Paris since Wednesday in an investigation into harassment he is accused of in a complaint by another hip-hop figure, Congolese rapper Gims, AFP learned from a source close to the case on Thursday.

This police custody, which could last 48 hours, aims to question the man whose real name is Elie Yaffa, on the complaint filed in August 2024 for moral harassment and cyberbullying by Gims, 39, and his partner Demdem, 38.

At the end of the day, the 48-year-old rapper, who performed three days of concerts at the end of last week at the Paris La Défense Arena, could be released without prosecution at this stage or be brought before a magistrate with a view to possible prosecution.

When contacted, his lawyers, Marie Roumiantseva and Gilles Vercken, declined to comment.

Also contacted by AFP, David-Olivier Kaminski, Gims and Demdem's lawyer, declined to comment on the situation while Booba was in police custody.

When they filed their complaint, revealed by AFP, Gims and Demdem accused Booba of "attacking" them "for six years," "encouraged" by "an absolutely impressive number of his admirers," creating "a terrible situation of cyberbullying."

Supporting their social media posts, they believed that there were attacks on Gims' "physical appearance", with Booba sharing photos of him without his glasses, which he constantly wears.

In another message, Booba allegedly wrote, "You look like a dirty wizard cat food."

A recent song by Booba, "Dolce Camara," is said to be the "high point" of the harassment, according to the complaint.

In this song sung with SDM, Booba said in particular: "We like them fresh, very michtos (a slang derivative of +michetonneuse+, designating a woman attracted by money, Editor's note), who know how to welcome like Demdem".

Booba was pleased with the success of this song, justifying it by Gims' "insults" towards his daughter.

A figure in French-language rap since the 1990s, Booba has for several years been engaged in a crusade against influencers known as "influvoleurs" and their business practices, which are presented as deceptive.

On October 2, 2023, Booba was charged with aggravated online moral harassment against a "star" influencer, Magali Berdah, who had also filed a complaint.

The rapper will also be tried on December 3 for racist insults against a journalist and an essayist, as well as aggravated cyberbullying in the case of the former.