Raped hundreds of times Ex-husband addresses last words to Gisèle Pelicot before verdict
The main defendant in the Avignon trial speaks for the last time. He apologizes to his ex-wife for the anaesthetic and the countless rapes. Soon the verdict is reached.
16.12.2024, 11:17
dpa
Shortly before the end of the rape trial in the south of France, the main defendant has once again addressed his family. He asked his ex-wife Gisèle and the rest of his family for forgiveness, said Dominique Pelicot in his last words in court.
During the trial, the 72-year-old had confessed to repeatedly drugging and abusing his former partner over a period of almost ten years and offering her to strangers for rape. Gisèle Pelicot estimates that she was raped around 200 times.
In addition to Dominique Pelicot, 50 men are on trial in Avignon. Almost all of them are accused of rape. Investigators assume that a dozen other men raped Gisèle Pelicot. However, they could not be identified. Pelicot's ex-husband took hundreds of photos and videos of the acts.
The mammoth trial is drawing to a close with the last words of the accused. The verdict is expected on Thursday morning. While the public prosecutor's office demanded 20 years in prison for Dominique Pelicot and between 4 and 18 years for the other defendants, more than half of the accused demanded an acquittal.
