France’s National Frequency Agency (ANFR) launched an investigation after a mobile phone operator reported night-time disruptions in the town of Messanges, in south-western France.

The agency said it identified the source of the disruption as a wave jammer, which is illegal in France, and tracked down the owner to a private house.

The apparent jammer allegedly told officials that he had bought the device online after looking up ways to prevent his teenage children from accessing the internet via their smartphones.

“A radical solution, but above all illegal and disproportionate,” the agency said. “Because the equipment did not blur only the interior of its housing. He seriously disrupted all telephony and mobile internet in the area around his home, depriving not only his children but also his neighbours, the inhabitants of his municipality and the neighbouring municipality of a good mobile connection!”

The man is now facing prosecution and could be punished with up to six months’ imprisonment and/or a fine of up to €30,000 for the possession and use of the illegal device.