Warning: this article discusses rape and SA which some readers may find distressing.
Gisele Pélicot, a 72-year-old woman from Mazan, France, is facing her husband Dominique, 71, in a landmark trial after learning he had been 'abusing her for over 10 years'.
Dominique is on trial for allegedly drugging Gisele's food and raping her over the course of a decade, as well as inviting more than 70 men over to commit the same crime.
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Dominique's crimes were uncovered in 2020, after he was arrested for filming up women's skirts in a supermarket - also known as 'upskirting'.
Police then searched the Pelicot home and uncovered a file on his computer titled 'abuses', which included footage of his wife being raped.
Dominique's lawyer has previously stated that Dominique has 'always declared himself guilty', claiming he said: “I put her to sleep, I offered her, and I filmed.”
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Gisèle has bravely waived her right to anonymity in the trial, asking for 'complete publicity until the end', so that 'shame changes sides'.
Gisèle was so heavily drugged she has no recollection of the abuse, only learning of it when she was showed footage by police.
The mother-of-three, whose children are supporting her in court, has taken the stand to stress the impact of the depraved abuse and recount the moment she discovered what her husband had done.
She told the court: "My world fell apart. For me, everything was falling apart. Everything I had built up over 50 years."
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Gisèle said her motionless state in the footage led to her struggling to recognise herself.
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She added: “I was sacrificed on the altar of vice. They regarded me like a rag doll, like a garbage bag.
“When you see that woman drugged, mistreated, a dead person on a bed - of course the body is not cold, it’s warm, but it’s as if I’m dead."
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Despite the crimes coming to light in 2020, the court learned Gisèle was only able to watch the footage in May of this year.
She added that rape is not a strong enough term for what she went through, instead calling it 'torture'.
"Frankly, these are scenes of horror for me," Gisèle added.
It is alleged that Dominique instructed the men, who he recruited for the abuse on an online chatroom which has since been shut down - to wash their hands and not wear aftershave or smoke tobacco, so Gisèle would not sense that they were strangers.
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The effects were so severe that Gisèle believed she had Alzheimers and experienced gynaecological problems, later learning she had contracted sexually transmitted diseases.
The 50 men identified by police who are now standing trial were aged between 26 and 73 when they were apprehended.
Their job titles include a local councillor, nurses, a journalist, a former police officer, a prison guard, soldier, firefighter and civil servant.
The trial is expected to last until December.
If you have been affected by any of the issues in this article and wish to speak to someone in confidence, contact the Rape Crisis England and Wales helpline on 0808 500 222, available 24/7. If you are currently in danger or need urgent medical attention, you should call 999.
Topics: World News, News
Kya Buller