Pensioner, 71, ‘drugged wife & recruited 72 men online to rape her while he filmed sick attacks over 10yrs’
A FRENCH pensioner is on trial accused of drugging his wife and allowing 72 strangers to rape her.
Dominique Pélicot, 71, allegedly invited the men he met online to assault his wife Gisele Pélicot after slipping Lorazepam into her food to knock her out.
Dominique, who has been married to his wife for over 50 years, is said to have filmed the men raping her while she was unconscious.
The trial began today in Avignon, France, after he was arrested in late 2020 and police searched his phone, computer and hard drives.
On them they found videos of the abuse which Dominique allegedly shared in a depraved chat room called "A son insu", meaning "without her knowing".
Gisele, who waived her right to anonymity, faced her husband and alleged attackers in the courtroom in a brave move.
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She had no idea about the rapes, which had allegedly been happening for almost ten years, until police showed her the footage.
A shocking 92 attacks were recorded with a list of 72 abusers, including 51 people who have been identified.
Fifty men, aged between 26 and 74, are being tried alongside Dominique today.
Asked to confirm his name and address at the start of proceedings, Dominique said: "My home is prison, you know it".
One of Gisele's lawyers, Antoine Camus, said the trial will be "a horrible ordeal" for Gisele.
He said: "For the first time, she will have to live through the rapes that she endured over 10 years."
Gisele, 72, has no memory of the abuse she suffered.
She is attending the trial with her three children after choosing not to have one behind closed doors because "that's what her attackers would have wanted", her lawyer told AFP.
Cops arrested Dominique in September 2020 when he was caught by a security guard trying to film up the skirts of three women in a shopping centre.
Officials then said they found hundreds of pictures and videos of his wife on his computer, visibly unconscious and mostly in the foetal position.
They allegedly showed dozens of rapes in the couple's home in Mazan, a village of 6,000 people outside of Avignon in Provence.
Investigators also found chats on a site called coco.fr, which has since been shut down, which included the forum where men exchange information about sexual encounters they have had without their victims' knowledge.
Dominique allegedly crushed Témesta pills into his wife's evening meals and then invited the strangers into their bedroom to assault her.
He admitted giving Gisele the drug when interviewed by prosecutors.
Dominique took part in the rapes, filmed them and encouraged the other men using degrading language, prosecutors claim.
When cops searched his devices they found a file labelled "abuse" on a flash drive.
On it were hundreds of videos with the dates, names and nature of the abuse.
The accused rapists included a forklift driver, a fire brigade officer, a company boss and a journalist.
Some were single, others married or divorced, and some were family men.
Most participated just once, but some took part up to six times.
Their defence has been that they were living out a fantasy with a willing couple.
But Dominique told investigators that all were aware his wife had been drugged without her knowledge.
He also told prosecutors that just three men left the house shortly after arriving, while all others proceeded to have intercourse with his wife.
An expert said her state "was closer to a coma than to sleep".
The rapes allegedly stretched almost ten years from July 2011 to October 2020.
It began when the couple was living near Paris, and continued after they moved to Mazan two years later.
The Pélicots shared a large family house and – outwardly – were highly respectable pensioners with family members who visited regularly.
Neighbours spoke about them as ‘lovely people’ who held parties around their swimming pool, in a well-kept garden, according to court evidence.
How you can get help
Women's Aid has this advice for victims and their families:
- Always keep your phone nearby.
- Get in touch with charities for help, including the Women’s Aid live chat helpline and services such as SupportLine.
- If you are in danger, call 999.
- Familiarise yourself with the Silent Solution, reporting abuse without speaking down the phone, instead dialing “55”.
- Always keep some money on you, including change for a pay phone or bus fare.
- If you suspect your partner is about to attack you, try to go to a lower-risk area of the house – for example, where there is a way out and access to a telephone.
- Avoid the kitchen and garage, where there are likely to be knives or other weapons. Avoid rooms where you might become trapped, such as the bathroom, or where you might be shut into a cupboard or other small space.
If you are a victim of domestic abuse, SupportLine is open Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 6pm to 8pm on 01708 765200. The charity’s email support service is open weekdays and weekends during the crisis – messageinfo@supportline.org.uk.
Women’s Aid provides a - available weekdays from 8am-6pm and weekends 10am-6pm.
You can also call the freephone 24-hour National Domestic Abuse Helpline on 0808 2000 247.
Dominique has also been charged with a 1991 murder and rape, which he denies, and an attempted rape in 1999, to which he admitted after DNA testing.
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Experts said the man does not appear to be mentally ill, however in documents seen by AFP, they said he had a need to feel "all-powerful" over the female body.
The trial is due to last until December 20.