The rain violently sweeps the beach of Val-André before giving way to the rays of the sun which force the bay of Saint-Brieuc (Côtes-d'Armor) to sparkle with emerald reflections.
A few steps away, the village nests locals and tourists.
The recipe is the same in all Breton seaside resorts: crêperies and ice cream parlors sit alongside bars and other souvenir or clothing shops.
In principle, all the ingredients are there for Pléneuf-Val-André to calmly receive the thousands of holidaymakers who come to swell the population to 30,000 inhabitants each summer.
Except that, since July 2020, what seems to be a rivalry between traders has slipped so badly that one of the protagonists has filed a complaint for assault and battery and attempted murder with the Saint-Brieuc prosecutor's office.
After spending several thousand euros for his long months of work, Rodolphe Guilloux, a 53-year-old Parisian, opens 123, a bar located rue Clémenceau, one of the two shopping streets of the small town of Val-André, the July 8, 2020. A few meters from the seafront, the establishment promises a "friendly and convivial" atmosphere.
"A beautiful project which stood out with other tourist establishments"
The bet seems to have been held since people are thronging to 123. “We were a hit from the start among young people and many locals!
», Congratulates the boss.
Another shopkeeper from the town, who quickly took up her habits in this bistro, described it as "a great project, which stood out with the other tourist establishments or expensive ones in the Val-André".
What to stir up the jealousies of certain competitors?
In any case, rumors are starting to make their way through the granite streets.
"I am used to doing a puppet show in the evening and they would have said that I scared the children," annoys Rodolphe Guilloux.
They also allegedly said that I was serving alcohol to minors or selling cocaine.
"
It must be said that the fifty-something does not go unnoticed.
Son of a former great Parisian tax lawyer, also based in Le Val, the bar owner is banter.
At the wheel of his old Volvo 240, he does not hesitate to call out to so and so in the street, through the window.
Gouailleur… and maybe even a bit provocative!
As and when his setbacks, this trained actor posts messages on the window of his bar.
"Covid 19 party" or "Daddy is not happy!"
»Were able to read his detractors.
Other times, according to the minutes that Le Parisien consulted, business cards of 123 are placed on a competitor's tables or taped to the ground all along the street.
"A real harassment" from the police
A few days after the opening, Rodolphe Guilloux sleeps on the sofa of his closed bar, he says, to secure his business with a defective door.
“At 2:30 am, I was awakened by a gendarme, who accused me of being alcoholic.
The bar was closed.
I unsuccessfully requested that a blood alcohol test be performed immediately.
The gendarme opposed it ”, writes Rodolphe Guilloux to the public prosecutor of Saint-Brieuc.
On July 20, around 2:29 am, the boss of 123 receives another visit from the gendarmerie for noise at night.
“The bar was closed, everything was off.
The authorities note, however, a crowd of about twenty young people in front of the establishment.
A first decree from the Côtes-d'Armor prefecture falls on August 27: 123 must close for two weeks.
But Rodolphe Guilloux assures him, "no report of the gendarmerie exists, only reports transmitted".
A second order will follow a few weeks later, still for “noise nuisance”.
A complaint for forgery in public writing is filed.
"The question arises of the motivations of the police who have engaged in real harassment since the opening of my bar", asks Rodolphe Guilloux again.
Two open gas cylinders in the yard
In all, the gendarmerie went 12 times to 123 following calls made by residents or neighboring traders.
One of them complains in particular of too loud music, played under his child's windows, forcing him to go and live elsewhere.
In their minutes, two traders denounce poor management of the bar, rowdy speakers outside and insults hurled in front of their customers by Rodolphe Guilloux who seemed to be intoxicated.
"He really thinks that I am responsible for his problems and not for the management of his establishment", notes one of the complainants in his report.
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The situation really gets out of hand when Rodolphe Guilloux thwarts what he calls “the attack”.
Late one evening in August, when the bar was closed, he discovered his two large open gas cylinders in his courtyard.
The safety of the bottles, which he uses to supply his kitchen, is placed on the ground.
"It stank of gas in the restaurant," notes Rodolphe.
Friends present in the bar then see a silhouette fleeing from the courtyard.
For the owner of the bistro, it is obvious, the act is malicious.
A complaint for attempted murder with a civil party was filed in early April.
Names of birds and "a huge pie"
Mid-September, a new level is climbed with one of its rivals.
That evening, Rodolphe Guilloux, accompanied by Pierrot, his one-meter-tall clown, intends to play a puppet show in front of his competitor's terrace.
But the service is not to the taste of the owner who starts filming the scene.
The tone rises, the discussion, covered with insults, drags on for twenty minutes and turns in circles.
One arguing that he is within his rights, because on the public highway, the other annoying, because his customers are "disturbed".
The names of birds fuse, then Rodolphe Guilloux wipes "a huge pie", he assures us.
His competitor would then have pushed him several times against the window of the bar.
The video is sent to the gendarmerie, but "the part where he hits me was truncated", protests the boss of 123 who then files a new complaint for assault and battery.
Side association of traders, we prefer to refrain from any comments.
The other protagonists did not wish to answer us.
But a resident sums it up: "We will all be very happy when Rodolphe is gone".
Rodolphe Guilloux is for his part prosecuted before the criminal court for moral harassment by two neighboring traders and contempt of person holding public authority for insulting messages against the mayor of Pléneuf-Val-André.
Me Hugo Lévy, lawyer at the Rennes bar, confirms: "On June 14, we will defend Rodolphe Guilloux before the Saint-Brieuc court, facing people who rely on criminal proceedings for commercial purposes".
