Guilty as Charged

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A French man, accused of drugging his wife so he and other men could rape her, confessed to the charges in court Tuesday, in a case that has sparked outrage and protests across France, CBS News reported.

On Tuesday, defendant Dominique Pelicot, 71, appeared before a court in the southern city of Avignon on charges of drugging his wife, Gisele, with anti-anxiety drugs between 2011 and 2020.

While she was unconscious, Pelicot would rape her and recruited dozens of men online to do the same.

“I am a rapist, like the others in this room,” said Pelicot, referring to the 50 other defendants – aged 24 to 74 – in the mass trial. The defendant claimed that “they all knew” he was inviting them to sexually assault his wife, adding that Gisele “did not deserve this.”

His wife Gisele previously told the court that she never realized her husband was drugging her, and credited the police for saving her life. She has come forward publicly and allowed her name to be published, saying she wants to serve as an example to other women to come forward about their assaults.

Police discovered evidence of Gisele’s assault when they seized Pelicot’s digital devices after catching him capturing images of women’s clothing at a store. Authorities came across hundreds of photos of the abuse.

Pelicot previously admitted to the crime, but this was the first time he had spoken in detail since the trial began earlier this month.

Some of the accused men said they knew that the husband was drugging his wife, while others countered that they believed this was part of a swinger couple’s fantasy.

The husband’s testimony could impact the case of the 50 other men, observers noted.

The case shocked the nation and prompted a series of demonstrations over the weekend against sexual violence, Voice of America wrote.

Protests took place in Paris, Marseilles and Nantes, with participants holding signs saying “No, to the culture of rape,” and “Gisele, we believe you.”

The Avignon trial is the latest in a series of cases related to sexual violence that have rocked France.

Recently, allegations surfaced that Abbe Pierre, a beloved crusader for the homeless who died in 2007, sexually assaulted women over several decades. Efforts are now underway to remove his name from the charities, parks and streets named after him.

Meanwhile, next month, iconic actor Gerard Depardieu will go on trial over the alleged sexual assaults of two women in 2021, according to the Guardian.