Fifty-one men are standing trial for sexually assaulting a 72-year-old woman over a decade, alongside her husband who is accused of drugging her unconscious, in a case which has shaken France.
A 72-year-old woman has appeared in court in southern France to face 51 men accused of sexually assaulting her while she was drugged unconscious by her husband.
They pointed out that footage shot by the husband would be shown to the court and that “not only would it be dangerous to hold the proceedings in public, but it would also undermine the dignity of the individuals concerned”. Some defence lawyers also called for the trial not to become “a spectacle”.But Pélicot insisted the trial should not be shut to the public and journalists because “that’s what her attackers would have wanted”, said Antoine Camus, one of her lawyers.
“She wants to raise awareness as widely as possible about date rape drugs so that this never happens again.” The defendants, 18 of whom have been in detention awaiting the trial, were aged from 21 to 68 at the time of the alleged rapes. They include a fireman, a lorry driver, a municipal councillor, an IT worker in a bank, a prison guard, a nurse and a journalist.
Examining his computer, they found thousands of pictures and videos of his wife, visibly unconscious. He would then meticulously film and archive their sexual acts, keeping the footage in a file called “ABUSES” on a USB. The men are accused of washing their hands in hot water to avoid a sudden change of temperature and undressing in the kitchen to avoid leaving any clothes in the bedroom. The prosecution claims they also parked near a school and walked in the dark to the house to avoid arousing neighbours’ suspicions.“He is ashamed of what he has done, it’s unforgivable,” she told reporters, adding that his criminal acts were part of “a form of addiction”.
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