France awaits 51 verdicts in the mass rape case against Gisele Pelicot | World news

A husband described as one of France’s worst sex offenders is expected to be sentenced tomorrow – as the verdicts for all 51 defendants come back in the Gisele Pelicot mass-rape case.

Dominique Pelicot, 72, has admitted drugging and raping his then-wife, Mrs Pelicot, 72, for almost a decade.

During the four-month trial, he explained how he invited strangers to rape her as well.

“I am a rapist,” he said as he testified, claiming that all the other defendants also knew it was rape.

The court heard that Dominique Pelicot began sedating his wife with anti-anxiety medication and raping her in 2011 when they lived in Paris.

But his crimes escalated when they moved to the beautiful Provencal village of Mazan.

It was here, he said, that he began recruiting men to rape his wife using a chat room called “without her knowing”.

He told the men he invited to their home not to park at the house to avoid detection.

They were also told not to wear fragrance or smoke to avoid leaving a trail that Mrs. Pelicot could smell.

He then filmed the attacks.

In 2020, he was caught by chance when a security guard saw him trying to film up women’s skirts at a local mall.

A complaint was made and when police investigated they found 20,000 indecent images, including footage of men having sex with Ms Pelicot while she was sedated.

“He is extremely dangerous because he is intelligent and he is calculated,” said Christophe Huguenin-Virchaux, a lawyer for one of the defendants.

“Mazan is possibly just a drop in the ocean of what Dominique Pelicot has done.”

50 other men have also been charged with rape or sexual assault.

The majority reject the charges, saying they were unaware that Ms Pelicot had not consented.

Some claim that Dominique Pelicot had told them that they were taking part in the couple’s sex game.

Among those facing one of the harshest sentences is 30-year-old Charly A.

He is accused of raping Ms Pelicot six times, including on her birthday.

Mr. Huguenin-Virchaux, his defense lawyer, has argued that Charly believed Ms Pelicot knew what was happening.

“From the beginning he was told this was a scenario for swingers. A couple with a fantasy. He was light years away from realizing he was participating in rape,” the defense attorney added.

Unconscious and powerless when she was attacked, Ms Pelicot deliberately waived her right to anonymity so the evidence could be heard in public.

Her bravery has inspired millions of people across the country and beyond to join protests against sexual violence.

Read more:
Pelicot sons face ‘devil father’ in court
Thousands protest against sexual violence in France
Ms Pelicot says her husband ‘destroyed’ and betrayed her

The judges are expected to hand down all verdicts and sentences on Thursday.

Dominique Pelicot faces the rest of his life in prison.

Prosecutors have asked for sentences totaling more than 600 years in prison for all 51 defendants.

Mrs Pelicot says she is a broken woman.

The 72-year-old has said she is seeing a psychologist and taking long walks as she tries to rebuild what others stole from her.

She doesn’t know if she will ever recover.

And there is no doubt that the horror of what happened to her will haunt France long after the verdicts are handed down.