Three far-right French extremists were given prison sentences over a 2018 plot to assassinate French President Emmanuel Macron.
The longest sentence was given to Jean-Pierre Bouyer, 66. He got four years in prison with one suspended, BBC reported.
The other two were given shorter sentences, and a fourth was given a six-month suspended sentence for possession of a weapon. The three main culprits were found guilty of conspiring to prepare an act of terrorism. Nine co-defendants were cleared and released.
The charges revolved around a 2018 plan in which the group planned to assassinate Macron with a knife attack during commemorations for the centennial of World War I.
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Prosecutors claimed the conspiracy was a thoroughly planned effort to overthrow the French government. The defense claimed they were a group of disgruntled, hapless citizens without the capability or will to carry out their plan and said the case had been widely blown out of proportion.
Private chats obtained by the court showed conversations between the "Barjols," as their Facebook group was called, with angry sentiments about migration, a potential civil war, and their hatred of Macron, the Guardian reported.
One of the defendants, a mother of three, claimed in a private chat obtained by the court that she could storm the presidential palace with the help of 500 Russian soldiers, BBC reported.
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The three convicted defendants are expected to appeal their sentences.