He filmed the crimes Pensioner had his wife raped by 72 men

A pensioner in France is said to have drugged his wife for years and then had her abused by strangers. 51 men are now on trial for the shocking acts.

A man in France had his own wife raped by other men for years. The now 71-year-old repeatedly drugged his wife into unconsciousness. The trial against the man and 50 other defendants began on Monday in Avignon. The defendants each face up to 20 years in prison.

According to the indictment, the repeated abuse is said to have taken place over a period of around ten years. The rape victim found out four years ago how her husband had abused her. He first came to the attention of the judiciary after he filmed female customers under their skirts in a shopping center. During a search, investigators then found the rape videos on his computer.

Pensioner filmed 72 men being raped

Investigators assume a total of 92 rapes between 2011 and 2020. During questioning, the accused confessed that he had given his wife strong medication on some evenings without her knowledge and then had her raped by other men.

He found the men via an online platform for sexual contacts that has since been banned. According to the report, 72 men raped the woman, but the police were unable to identify all of them.

LawsFrom today, the principle "No means no" applies to sex

The husband is not said to have demanded money from the men, he was reportedly interested in satisfying his sexual fantasies. He took part in the rapes himself and filmed them. He also instructed the men not to smell of perfume or cigarette smoke so as not to wake his wife. They were also told to warm their hands under warm water.

Rapists between 21 and 68 years old

Most of the co-defendants came only once, but some came up to six times. According to experts, they do not have any mental disorders, but are said to have been dominated by feelings of omnipotence. The men, who were between 21 and 68 years old at the time of the crime, include a fireman, an orderly, a prison guard and a journalist.

Several of them told investigators that they were convinced that the couple were playing erotic games. However, the main defendant emphasized that they all knew that the woman was under the influence of drugs and unconscious. "Each individual could have made a different decision and left the scene again," the investigators emphasize.

Rape victim wants "full publicity"

For the woman, who lived with her husband for almost 50 years, the trial will be "a terrible experience", said her lawyer Antoine Camus. "She will experience the rapes ten years later for the first time," he added. His client has "no memory" of the individual acts.

Through another of her lawyers, Stéphane Babonneau, the victim had stated that she wanted "complete, total, all-out publicity". The public prosecutor's office had requested a trial behind closed doors so that the video recordings of the crimes would not be shown publicly. The request was rejected by the presiding judge.

Pensioner also charged in a murder case

The main defendant stated through his lawyer that he was "ashamed" of the acts. "It was a form of addiction," said lawyer Béatrice Zavarro. Her client had not denied the acts, she added.

The man is also accused in two other cases. He is alleged to have committed a murder and rape in Paris in 1991, which he denies. An attempted rape in Seine-et-Marne in 1999 was admitted by the accused after his DNA was matched to the crime.