BBC reports that a 72-year-old French woman, Gisele Pelicot, has delivered harrowing testimony at the trial of her ex-husband, Dominique Pelicot, and dozens of men accused of drugging and repeatedly raping her over the course of a decade. Speaking in a calm but firm voice before a court in Avignon, southern France, Ms. Pelicot recounted the horror of discovering that her husband had systematically filmed the assaults while she was unconscious, storing thousands of images that investigators later uncovered.
“I was sacrificed on the altar of vice,” she testified. “They regarded me like a rag doll, like a garbage bag. I no longer have an identity. I don’t know if I’ll ever rebuild myself.” She went on to describe the devastating moment when she realized the extent of her abuse, calling the scenes captured by her husband “barbaric” and “nightmarish.”
Ms. Pelicot waived her right to anonymity in hopes that her story might help other women who have endured similar ordeals. “For me, everything collapsed,” she said. “I hope my testimony can prevent other women from suffering the same fate.”
The shocking details of the case emerged after Dominique Pelicot, 71, was arrested in 2020 for taking inappropriate photographs of women in a supermarket. A police search of his phone and hard drives revealed the disturbing videos of his wife’s alleged assaults, leading to a larger investigation. Ms. Pelicot expressed her gratitude to the police lieutenant who arrested her husband, saying, “He saved my life and I probably wouldn’t be here without him.”
The couple, who had been married for 50 years and raised three children together, had retired to a quiet town in Provence. Ms. Pelicot told the court that she had believed they were a close couple until the horrifying truth was revealed. After police showed her some of the images documenting her abuse, she packed two suitcases and left her husband. “That was all that was left for me of 50 years of life together,” she said.
The impact of the revelations was felt deeply by Ms. Pelicot’s family. She recounted the moment she told her daughter, who “screamed like a wild beast” upon hearing the allegations. “I will never forget this,” she added. Her sons, she said, were in shock and struggled to fully grasp the situation.
The investigation revealed that Dominique Pelicot had used a messaging website commonly frequented by criminals to invite men to sexually abuse his wife. The website has since been shut down, and police were able to track down most of the 72 suspects over the course of two years. Fifty men, aged between 22 and 70, are standing trial alongside Dominique Pelicot. If convicted of aggravated rape, they could face up to 20 years in prison.
Many of the defendants deny parts of the accusations, claiming they were manipulated by Mr. Pelicot. However, police have built their case around the extensive video evidence collected by Dominique Pelicot himself. The trial, which began this week, is expected to continue until December 2024, with Mr. Pelicot scheduled to give his testimony next week.
The case has sent shockwaves through France, and as more details emerge, it serves as a chilling reminder of the horrors that can occur behind closed doors.
