Rape trial in Avignon Gisèle Pelicot leaves the courtroom for the first time
For the first time since the start of the monster trial in the Gisèle Pelicot case, the victim has left the courtroom. Videos of the rapes were also shown publicly for the first time.
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- For nine years, a man in France repeatedly drugged his wife and had her abused by numerous men.
- The husband and 50 accomplices are now on trial for rape.
- The trial has now been dragging on for over a month.
Dozens of men are said to have raped her, she is said to have been drugged with sleeping pills countless times by her ex-husband and then abused. The monster trial surrounding Gisèle Pelicot in Avignon, France, has triggered a worldwide response.
The trial has now been dragging on for over a month. On Wednesday, a witness testified that the main defendant, Dominique Pelicot, had offered to rape his then wife in exchange for gardening work. He had refused the offer because Dominique Pelicot had told him that he was drugging his wife with sleeping pills, 42-year-old Jérôme B. testified in court. He replied to Dominique Pelicot "that this is rape and I do not agree."
Dominique Pelicot had also created a folder on his computer with the name Jérôme B., but the investigators did not find any photos or videos in it, as there was never a meeting. "He asks me to do gardening work and in return he offers me his wife," B. described the communication with the main defendant. "I offer him a Saturday morning, he says no because he gives her a tablet to make her go to sleep."
Videos shown publicly
During the investigation, the authorities came across over 4,000 photos and videos of the rapes. These were shown publicly for the first time last week - at the express request of Gisèle Pelicot. Nine videos and several photos of the crimes were presented to media representatives and shocked spectators at the trial last Friday.
The presentation of the shocking evidence lasted almost an hour. The spectators in the courtroom and in an additional auditorium were left noticeably breathless when they were shown how Gisèle Pelicot was abused by various men on her marital bed at home in Mazan. The recordings showed the seven of a total of 51 defendants in the trial.
Gisèle Pelicot spent most of the time looking at her cell phone during the presentation of the videos and photos, while her ex-husband in the dock shielded his eyes or looked away. Some of the co-defendants looked away, others turned their eyes to the floor.
Leaving the courtroom for the first time
The co-defendants then again denied the accusation of rape. While some defendants in the trial argued that they had thought it was a joint sex game between the couple and that the woman was only pretending to be asleep, one of the defendants questioned this week described himself as a "victim" of Dominique Pelicot and emphasized that he had acted out of fear of him.
But even for Gisèle Pelicot, the accounts are not easy to bear. According to media reports, she left the courtroom for the first time on Wednesday when one of the defendants described exactly how he became aware of Pelicot. He had come across Dominique Pelicot's advertisement via an online platform.
When the man complained that there was "too little choice" on the platform and that he had "probably thought a little too little" about the subsequent rape, Gisèle Pelicot left the courtroom accompanied by a psychologist, reports "France Info". She told her lawyer: "From everything I've seen and heard so far ... I can't stand this man."
