2 months ago
9
"I was sacrificed on the altar of vice," a 70-year-old
French woman
said to describe years of alleged
abuse
as she stood with 50 other men charged with raping her.
Gisèle Pélicot was testifying in court against her ex-husband who allegedly drugged her, brought men to rape her and filmed it while she remained unconscious, Associated Press reported.
“I thought we were a close couple,” she said as she testified in court.
Gisèle parted ways with her
husband
Dominique Pélicot in 2020 after the police showed her the countless videos which showed men seemingly raping Gisèle in their home while she appeared to be unconscious.
“I no longer have an identity. ... I don’t know if I’ll ever rebuild myself,” she said.
Chilling details of the incident that unfolded over 10 years, starting around 2010, have emerged after Dominique revealed that men invited to the couple's home were required to follow specific rules: they had to remain quiet, undress in the kitchen, and avoid wearing perfume or smelling of tobacco.
At times, the men had to wait up to an hour and a half in a nearby parking lot for the drug to fully take effect and render Gisèle Pélicot unconscious.
“They regarded me like a rag doll, like a garbage bag,” Gisèle said.
Dominique was also caught secretly taking photos of women's crotches in a supermarket. This led investigators to search Pélicot's phone and computer, where they discovered thousands of disturbing photographs and videos of Gisèle.
“For me, everything collapses,” she expressed. “These are scenes of barbarity, of rape.”
Police uncovered messages allegedly sent by Dominique on a messaging website often used by criminals, in which he invited men to sexually abuse his wife. The website has since been shut down.
The police have identified and tracked down over 72 suspects in a two-year investigation.
In addition to Dominique, 50 other men, ranging 22 to 70 years old, are now on trial.
The trial will unfold over the coming months, with defendants appearing in small groups before a panel of five judges. Dominique is scheduled to testify next week.
