Loyal Friend: Here’s the terrifying true story that inspired the series with Lor Kalami

In A Devout Friend, the first French creation on the HBO Max platform, Laure Calam plays Chris, a woman who for several years becomes one of the victims of the attack of November 13, 2015.

As incredible as it may seem, the series is actually adapted from the true story of Florence M., told in Alexander Kaufman’s investigative book under the title. Bataclan myth.

Who is the real Bataclan legend?

In the wake of the attacks, which have left France in mourning, Florence M., known online as “Flo Kitty,” reaches out to survivors on social media and explains that her friend Greg was also injured at the Bataclan. .

Just like Chris in the series, he quickly finds a place with the victims and becomes an ear for those who need it. In an interview with our colleagues 20 minutes When his book came out, Alexander Kaufman said that some victims admitted that “Florence M. did them good“.

He was employed by the victims’ association Life for Paris. He is a member of the Board of Directors and is even being heard in the National Assembly as part of the Victim Assistance Bill. He will even manage to expel some crooks who joined the association.

That’s not all: Florence also invents a life for herself. She claims to have a boyfriend in the US whom she plans to join. And he still has a friend, Greg, for whom he creates a fake profile to chat with some survivors.

“I think she was a very lonely woman, a victim of her loneliness and her past“, the author explained. “His Facebook account, which I had access to, is a dive into that loneliness. Unlike other false victims who lied with purely Viennese logic, Florence M. needed socialization..”

Unscrupulous fraudster

At the same time, Florence M. The Fund for Victims of Terrorism and Other Crimes (FGTI) represents a Bataclan survivor. He uses the different testimonies he was able to create his own story.

He even went so far as to take an Eagles of Death Metal concert ticket from a victim of the association to use as proof of his good faith. In this way, the fifty-year-old received 25,000 euros from the guarantee fund and more than 13,000 euros from the health insurance.

But over the months, many gray areas appear in his stories. After crossing several facts, the association realizes that Florence has lied and takes legal action to expose her deception.

In March 2018, Creteil court sentenced him to four and a half years in prison. Unfortunately, Florence M. Not the only false Bataclan victim identified by French justice. About twenty were identified and convicted of fraud.

But for Alexander Kaufman, his story stands out from the rest. “Of all the false victims, Florence M. has had the most incredible and dizzying journey“, he confided.

“Even if we find burlesque and absurd details in each of these stories, it is painted with countless twists and turns. And there was a digital side to his lies that made his journey even more mysterious. So much so that I said to myself, if we were to tell this story in an artistic way, it would seem incredible to me..”

Catch a new episode of A Devoted Friend this Friday, October 25 on HBO Max.