The children of mass rape victim Gisèle Pelicot have condemned the “low” sentences in France’s most shocking rape case which saw 51 men convicted for a total of 428 years.
Ex-husband Dominique Pelicot wept as he became one of 51 men convicted in a mass rape and sexual abuse trial involving Gisèle Pelicot, that saw her drugged and sexually assaulted over a number of years.
But his children believe the verdicts handed down to the guilty men in the case were too mild, a family member said.
“The children are disappointed by these low sentences,” said the family member, asking not be identified, after a court hearing in Avignon.
Prosecutors had requested sentences totalling 652 years, but the sentences handed out by judges came up 224 years short of this.
Gisèle’s grandchildren were at the forefront of her mind throughout the three-month long court case.
“I’m thinking about all the other families affected by this case and the unrecognised victims in these stories that are often in the shadows - you share my struggle,” Ms Pelicot added.
Dominique Pelicot has been jailed for the maximum term of 20 years. He previously admitted that for years, he drugged his wife so he and strangers could abuse her while he filmed it.
Key Points
- ‘You will die like a dog’, Dominique Pelicot is told by his daughter
- In full: The names and sentences of all 51 men found guilty
- 51 men sentenced to 428 years in prison
- Court finds 47 guilty of rape, two of attempted rape, two of sexual assault
- Gisèle Pelicot: Inside the rape trial that shocked the world
- Dominique Pelicot sobs as he is jailed for 20 years
In pictures: Dominique Pelicot, the rapist who drugged his wife and offered her body for sex
23:00
Barney Davis
The forgotten victim?
22:00
Barney Davis
Dominique Pelicot was also found guilty of taking indecent images of his daughter, Caroline Darian, and his daughters-in-law, Aurore and Celine.
Caroline - who was in court on Thursday - previously told the trial she felt she was the “forgotten victim” as, unlike in her mother’s case, there was no record of the abuse she is convinced was inflicted on her.
Dominique denied drugging and abusing his daughter.
“I will never come see you and you will die alone like a dog,” she shouted at him in court
Gisèle Pelicot’s heartbreaking statement outside court in full
21:00
Barney Davis
“This trial was a very difficult ordeal. I think first of all of my three children, David, Caroline and Florian. I also think of my grandchildren because they are the future and it is also for them that I have led this fight, as well as my daughters-in-law Aurore and Céline. I also think of all the other families affected by this tragedy.
“Finally, I think of the unrecognized victims whose stories often remain in the shadows. I want you to know that we share the same fight.
“I would like to express my deepest gratitude to all the people who supported me throughout this ordeal. Your testimonies have upset me and I have drawn from them the strength to come back every day. Long days of hearings.
“I also thank the victims’ aid association for our unwavering support. It has been invaluable to me. To all the journalists who have followed me and followed this case since its inception. I wish to express my gratitude for the faithful, respectful and dignified treatment in which they reported daily on these hearings.
“To my lawyers, finally, all the gratitude and esteem that I have for them for having accompanied me at each stage of this painful journey.
“I wanted, by opening the doors of this trial on September 2, that society could take hold of the debates that took place there.
“I have never regretted this decision. I now have confidence in our ability to collectively seize a future in which each woman and man can live in harmony with respect and mutual understanding. I thank you.”
Dominique Pelicot ‘dazed’ by 20 year sentence
20:00
Barney Davis
After the verdict was delivered, Dominique Pelicot’s lawyer said her client was “somewhat dazed” by his sentence and would consider whether to appeal.
He has 10 days to decide.
Dominique Pelicot, 72, was found guilty of all charges by a judge in Avignon, southern France, and cried in court as he was sentenced to the maximum term.
Gisèle Pelicot rape trial: The sentences for ex-husband and 51 defendants
19:23
Barney Davis
Who received the longest jail terms in the Gisèle Pelicot rape trial?
19:00
Barney Davis
Gisèle Pelicot’s ex-husband Dominique was sentenced for repeatedly drugging and raping his wife for almost a decade, and inviting dozens of strangers to rape her unconscious body
The court found 46 of the other defendants guilty of rape, two guilty of attempted rape and two guilty of sexual assault, handing down sentences of between three and 15 years in jail, less than the four-to-18 years demanded by the prosecution.
Their victim sat in the packed courtroom to hear the sentencing, having waived her right to anonymity.
All the defendants have 10 days to decide whether to appeal, and Dominique Pelicot’s lawyer said he was considering this option.
“Shame on the justice system,” some of the waiting crowd chanted when they found out about the lighter-than-requested prison terms. Gisele herself told reporters that she respected the court decisions.
Here are brief profiles of the men who received the longest sentences.
Gisèle's children condemn 'low' sentences of their mother's abusers
18:07
Barney Davis
The children of Dominique Pelicot believe the verdicts handed down to the guilty men in the case were too mild, a family member told Agence France-Presse (AFP).
“The children are disappointed by these low sentences,” said the family member, asking not be identified, after a court in Avignon sentenced Dominique Pelicot’s co-defendants to between three and 15 years in jail, with two of the sentences suspended.
Coco: The anonymous chat site dubbed the ‘den of predators’ that enabled the mass rape of Gisèle Pelicot
17:57
Tom Watling
‘Mr Everyman’: Who are the 51 men who sexually abused Gisèle Pelicot?
17:36
Tom Watling
Court sketch shows Gisèle Pelicot after trail
17:18
Tom Watling
‘You’ll die like a dog’: Dominique Pelicot’s daughter screams at him as rapist claims he never abused her
16:49
Tom Watling
Scholz praised Gisèle Pelicot
16:29
Tom Watling
German chancellor Olaf Scholz has praised the courage of Gisèle Pelicot after her former husband and 50 accomplices were charged for her rape.
“The shame must change sides. Thank you, Gisele Pelicot! You courageously went from anonymity to a public figure and fought for justice. You gave women around the world a strong voice. The shame always lies with the perpetrator,” he said.
How Gisèle Pelicot shamed ‘Mr Everyman’ during the rape trial which shocked the world
16:04
Tom Watling
Gisèle Pelicot mobbed by supporters as she leaves court after mass rape trial verdict
15:44
Tom Watling
Donald Trump? No. Gisèle Pelicot is the real Person of the Year
15:31
Tom Watling
ICYMI: Crowd outside court chant 'Shame on the justice system’
15:17
Alex Croft
Crowds outside the court were chanting “shame on the justice system” as some of the sentences were read out.
There is dismay among many outside the court on the length of some of the sentences - which are mostly shorter than prosecutors had demanded.
Prosecutors had demanded sentences of 652 years, but judges issued total sentences of 428 years.
Christelle Vidaller, 35, has been waiting outside the court since 9am. She told Reuters news agency that she was disappointed with the sentences.
“It’s a historical trial, we were expecting historical sentences,” she told Reuters.
Comment | Gisele Pelicot’s ‘descent into hell’ shows once again why women are so furious
14:49
Alex Croft
The phrase “angry woman” is bandied around as some kind of insult; spat out in the same breath as “angry feminist” or “bra burner” or “calm down, dear”. We’re meant to feel ashamed by the accusation, timid, cowed. We’re meant to retreat into ourselves and shut up. Well, not anymore.
Angry woman? You bet. We are livid. I, personally, am baseball-bat-to-a-glass-window furious that in the past week alone, we’ve seen headlines describing an incredibly courageous woman – Gisele Pelicot – whose life as she knew it disintegrated in 2020 when she discovered her husband had been drugging her and inviting strangers to rape her for years in her own home, while filming it – as “taking public revenge on men”. It’s not revenge to tell the truth. It is bravery. It is justice.
Victoria Richards writes:
‘The trial of cowardice’: Gisèle Pelicot’s words during the trial
14:35
Alex Croft
In an unusual move, Gisèle Pelicot waived her anonymity as a victim of rape, in the hope that it would encourage other victims of rape and sexual abuse to step forward.
Speaking during the trial, Ms Pelicot said: “For me this is the trial of cowardice, there is no other way to describe it.
“When you walk into a bedroom and see a motionless body, at what point (do you decide) not to react,” she addressed the men in the courtroom. She said there was no excuse for abusing her when she was unconscious.
“Why did you not leave immediately to report it to the police?,” she asked. “It is time for society to look at this macho, patriarchal society and change the way it looks at rape.”
‘Mr Everyman’: Who are the 51 men who sexually abused Gisèle Pelicot?
14:07
Alex Croft
The 50 men on trial for raping unconscious grandmother Gisèle Pelicot in a ten-year campaign of sordid secret attacks orchestrated by her husband have been dubbed “Monsieur Tout-le-monde” — Mr Everyman.
They are men of all walks of life, ranging in age from 27 to 74, who answered Dominique Pelicot’s invitation to abuse his drugged wife in an online chatroom.
On Friday a French court found 47 men guilty of rape, two guilty of attempted rape and two guilty of sexual assault.
Most lived in south-eastern France within a 60km radius of the village of Mazan, where the Pelicots retired. One, Simoné Mekenes, 43, was their next door neighbour.
They include a firefighter, a journalist, a nurse, a prison guard and a construction worker. Some are retired, some are unemployed and three quarters have families of their own.
Crime correspondent Amy-Clare Martin profiles each of the 51 men convicted in France’s worst mass rape case:
Nicholas François: Convicted journalist who claimed he only wanted sexual relations with Dominique
13:52
Alex Croft
Journalist Nicholas François, 42, claimed in court that he wanted to “try other things” after a difficult break-up with his ex-partner.
He was sentenced to eight years in prison and banned from working near children, after he was found guilty of aggravated rape and possessing child abuse imagery.
François told the court only went to the house with the aim of having a homosexual relationship with Dominique Pelicot.
Pelicot assured François that his wife would wake up after he started performing sexual acts on her, he said according to French outlet Liberation. He claimed he “mimed” the penetration.
François also denied possessing child pornography images which were found deleted on three USB sticks and a computer. "I deny having possessed and even more so being attracted to children," he insisted to the court.
‘You gave women around the world a strong voice’ - German chancellor
13:38
Alex Croft
German chancellor Olaf Scholz has thanked Gisèle Pelicot for her courage.
In a post on X, he wrote: “The shame must change sides. Thank you, Gisèle #Pelicot ! You courageously went from anonymity to public and fought for justice.
“You gave women around the world a strong voice. The shame always lies with the perpetrator.”
Die Scham muss die Seite wechseln. Danke, Gisèle #Pelicot! Mutig sind Sie aus der Anonymität in die Öffentlichkeit gegangen und haben für Gerechtigkeit gestritten. Sie haben weltweit Frauen eine starke Stimme gegeben. Die Schande liegt immer beim Täter.
— Olaf Scholz (@OlafScholz) December 19, 2024
Watch: Gisèle Pelicot reveals brave reason she waived anonymity in mass rape trial
13:25
Alex Croft
Gisèle Pelicot defiantly said she has “never regretted” publicly attending her rape trial as she spoke out for the first time since her ex-husband Dominique Pelicot was jailed for 20 years.
France’s worst-ever mass rape trial saw 51 men convicted for a total of 428 years today (19 December), in a case which has shocked the world.
Explaining why she chose to waive her right to anonymity, Ms Pelicot told the media after the verdicts: “I wanted... to ensure that society could see what was happening. I never have regretted this decision. I have now faith in our capacity to collectively take hold of a future in which everybody... can live together in harmony, respect, and mutual understanding.”
Ms Pelicot’s ex-husband, dubbed the Monster of Avignon, was jailed after being found guilty of orchestrating her horrific rape.
Watch here:
Pictured: Relieved smile and wave from Gisèle Pelicot as she leaves court
13:08
Alex Croft
‘You will die like a dog’, Dominique Pelicot is told by his daughter
12:51
Alex Croft
The daughter of Dominique Pelicot, dubbed the Monster of Avignon, screamed out in court that he would “die like a dog” as he issued his final statement of the trial.
Pelicot had been accused of drugging his daughter, Caroline, when she was 20, and taking photos of her naked in bed in lingerie which she didn’t recognise. The images were found years later.
In his final statement of the trial which appalled the world, Pelicot said according to the Daily Mail: I would like to look my daughter straight in the eye and tell her that I did nothing [to her].”
But Caroline Darian, his daughter, shouted out in court: “I’ll never go to see you ever. You’ll finish alone like a dog.”
He replied, according to the Telegraph: “If I had taken [the photos] I would say so, but I can’t remember. She will never believe me. I may die like a dog. I am not asking her to stand behind my coffin [when I die]. There won’t be a coffin.”
“Even if she doesn’t love me any more, I will always love her. I know what I did. I know what I didn’t do.”
In pictures: Gisèle Pelicot leaves Avignon court for the final time
12:42
Alex Croft
‘Merci Gisèle’ - crowds swarm as Ms Pelicot leaves court
12:26
Alex Croft
Gisèle Pelicot has left the courtroom in Avignon, southern France.
Ms Pelicot appeared calm as she walked down the steps of the courthouse which she has visited almost every day since September, to hear the devastating details of crimes committed against her.
She held herself with dignity as she exited the courts and was swarmed by her supporters who have spent all morning singing, chanting and holding placards.
They shouted “merci Gisèle” and “bravo Gisèle”, before she departed for the final time in a grey car.
As she was driven away, emotional crowds sang songs including with the lyrics: “the women are enraged”.
Gisele Pelicot says she ‘never regretted’ waiving anonymity
12:03
Alex Croft
Of her decision to waive her anonymity, Ms Pelicot said she “wanted to ensure that society could actually see what was happening and I never regretted this decision”.
She said she has “faith in our capacity to collectively take hold of our future”.
Ms Pelicot added that she respects the verdicts and sentences of the court.
Gisèle Pelicot speaks out after sentencing
12:01
Alex Croft
Gisèle Pelicot has spoken with members of the press after 51 men were convicted todday in France’s largest mass rape case.
“I’m very emotional,” she says. “It’s with a lot of emotion that I’m here to make a statement. This case was a very difficult test for me and I’m thinking first and foremost of my three children.
“I’m thinking about all the other families affected by this case and the unrecognised victims in these stories that are often in the shadows - you share my struggle.”
She expresses “deepest gratitude” to those who supported her throughout the process. “This really gave me strength to come back day after day”.
Court sketches: Gisèle Pelicot listens to verdicts
11:58
Alex Croft
Jean Tirano claims Dominique Pelicot sedated him before he raped Gisèle
11:53
Alex Croft
Jean Tirano, a 52-year-old roofer originally from Reunion Island, claims he was acting under the influence of drugs when he raped Gisèle Pelicot.
He has been sentenced to eight years in prison after raping Ms Pelicot in September 2018.
After arriving at the house, Tirano claims Dominique Pelicot gave him a drink before asking him to undress. “And after that, I don’t remember anymore”, he told the court according to Liberation. “I found myself in the car, I don’t remember how I got there.”
He claims Pelicot had drugged him using the drink.
The video of his abuse shows his abrupt exit from the room after Ms Pelicot moves and a thumbs up to the camera. But Tirano claims he has no memory of this.
“No, I don’t remember... It would be good for the victim, for the truth. And to defend myself . Now I’m seen as a liar or an idiot.”
He didn’t go to the police as he feared having to explain what he had done to his wife, Tirano claimed. “I’m not the kind of person who looks for trouble,” he added.
‘The world is no longer the same thanks to you’ - president of National Assembly
11:45
Alex Croft
The president of France’s National Assembly has issued words of support for Gisèle Pelicot.
She wrote on X: “Thank you for your courage Gisèle Pélicot. Through you, it is the voice of so many victims that carries today, the shame that changes sides, the taboo that is broken.
“The world is no longer the same thanks to you.”
Merci pour votre courage Gisèle Pélicot.
— Yaël Braun-Pivet (@YaelBRAUNPIVET) December 19, 2024
À travers vous, c’est la voix de tant de victimes qui porte aujourd’hui, la honte qui change de camp, le tabou qui se brise. Le monde n'est désormais plus le même grâce à vous. #Mazan pic.twitter.com/vLEfycqRHP
Jean-Pierre Marechal: Dominique Pelicot imitator sentenced to 12 years
11:41
Alex Croft
Jean-Pierre Marechal was found guilty of the attempted rape and aggravated rape of his own wife, and of drugging her.
Marechal was sentenced to 12 years in prison, after admitting to following Dominique Pelicot’s lead by drugging his own wife for five years.
He raped his wife, and invited Pelicot to rape her.
Marechard’s lawyer, Patrick Fontard, said his client would not be appealing the verdict, but that his client could be free in three years time.
‘Thank you, Madame’: Gisèle Pelicot on L’Humanité front cover
11:28
Alex Croft
L'Humanité du 19 décembre : Gisèle Pelicot, merci madame
— L'Humanité (@humanite_fr) December 18, 2024
https://t.co/HlQqUuQ1TE pic.twitter.com/fK9AIO8WZZ
Comment | Gisèle Pelicot’s daughter is dealing with unimaginable horror – as do all ‘forgotten victims’
11:20
Alex Croft
By now, Gisèle Pelicot is a household name – for all the wrong and most tragic of reasons.
Since September – when she bravely waived anonymity and testified against her husband Dominique – horrific details of how he drugged her, raped her and facilitated her rape by at least 50 other men have slowly come to light.
She has faced her abusers throughout the trial in Avignon, France, attending almost every court date. She has spoken of how “broken” she is and how her decision to be named was to help shift the shame felt by victims of rape and place it rightly on the assailants’ shoulders.
“I am a woman who is totally destroyed, and I don’t know how I’m going to rebuild myself. I’m 72 soon and I’m not sure my life will be long enough to recover from this,” she said of the abuse that spanned nine years.
Emma Clarke writes:
Watch: Men were ‘puppets’ of Dominique Pelicot, lawyer says
11:15
Alex Croft
51 men sentenced to 428 years in prison - report
11:08
Alex Croft
The 51 men accused in France’s largest mass rape trial have been sentenced to a total of 428 years, according to French outlet Le Monde.
Of the 51 found guilty - which includes Dominique Pelicot - 47 were convicted of rape, two of attempted rape and two of sexual assault.
Pictured: Gisèle Pelicot’s son gives thumbs up outside courtroom
11:02
Alex Croft
Three sentences may be deferred due to health issues - defence lawyer
11:01
Alex Croft
The sentences of three individuals may need to be deferred due to health considerations, defence lawyer Patrick Gontard said.
Speaking outside the courtroom, Mr Gontard said mental health assessments are being undertaken, according to a translation by Sky News.
More names emerge of the convicted rapists
10:54
Alex Croft
Abdelali Dallal
Dallal was sentenced to eight years and will be placed in a special jail due to medical issues, the judge said according to the BBC.
The 47-year-old pleaded guilty and admitted he was aware Gisèle Pelicot had been given sleeping pills.
Quentin Hennebert
Hennebert told the court he was “a little bit of a victim too”. He admitted to rape and is sentenced to seven years.
Jean Tirano
Tirano, sentenced to eight years, told the court he was drugged by Dominique Pelicot, which Pelicot denied, the BBC said.
13 years for man who raped Gisèle Pelicot six times
10:46
Alex Croft
Charly Arbo, 30, has been sentenced to 13 years in jail.
The former vineyard worker raped Gisèle Pelicot six times, according to the Guardian, including on her 66th birthday when he was 24.
Arbo proposed drugging and raping his own mother with Dominique Pelicot but did not go through with it, according to video evidence.
Crowd outside court chant: ‘Shame on the justice system'
10:40
Alex Croft
Crowds outside the court have been chanting “shame on the justice system”.
There is dismay among many outside the court on the length of some of the sentences - which are mostly shorter than prosecutors had demanded.
Christelle Vidaller, 35, has been waiting outside the court since 9am. She told Reuters news agency that she was disappointed with the sentences.
“It’s a historical trial, we were expecting historical sentences,” she told Reuters.
Dominique Pelicot's lawyer: Rape trial 'A good thing for justice'
10:40
Alex Croft
Gisèle Pelicot’s rapists named
10:35
Alex Croft
Jacques Cubeau
Cubeau, 73, a lorry driver and one of the oldest on trial, is sentenced to five years for aggravated rape, according to the BBC.
Cyrille Delville
The former football player admitted to rape. He was sentenced to eight years for aggravated rape.
Simoné Mekenese
The only defendant who Gisèle recognised, Mekenese lived next door to the Pelicots. He was sentenced to nine years for aggravated rape.
Romain Vandevelde
Vandevelde is sentenced to 15 years, less than what prosecutors asked for, for aggravated rape.
As her husband is jailed for his heinous crimes, we must ask: how many more Gisèle Pelicots are there?
10:29
Alex Croft
In the beginning, it was simply euphoria. She felt it almost immediately: a sudden surge of energy, an intense, pure happiness. Love? Possibly. Jane, who is using a pseudonym, had never felt anything like it before. For months prior she’d been in a sluggish depression, sleeping too much and, despite her best efforts, finding little pleasure in anything. The date – her first with John* – was a turning point.
Neither wanted the night to end, certainly not Jane. And so their first date spilled over into the following day, and the day after that, and the day after that. For two weeks this feeling – soaring pleasure – kept coming. Suddenly, in this bubble with John, her low mood evaporated, she was excited, fizzing – she barely needed more than four hours’ sleep per night. “We talked about marriage, about children, our life goals,” says Jane.
Special correspondent Zoë Beaty reports:
Dominique Pelicot cried as verdict read out
10:17
Alex Croft
Dominique Pelicot appeared to cry while the verdict was being read out, according to a BBC reporter inside the courtroom.
He has been sentenced to the maximum of 20 years in prison.
Dominique Pelicot considering whether to appeal
10:13
Alex Croft
Dominique Pelicot’s lawyer has spoken to the press outside the courtroom.
She says “no decision” has been made on whether Pelicot will appeal the verdict.
“I hope that it’s a good thing for justice that these debates were able to take place in the environment they did,” she added. “We felt that the necesary respect was given.
“Mr Pelicot was not necessarily the conductor that was alleged, but its important to actually look at the differnce made between the verdict for Mr Pelicot and for the co-defendants making up this orchestra, as it has been described,” she said, in quotes translated by Sky News.
‘The trial of cowardice’: Gisèle Pelicot’s words during the trial
10:06
Alex Croft
In an unusual move, Gisèle Pelicot waived her anonymity as a victim of rape, in the hope that it would encourage other victims of rape and sexual abuse to step forward.
Speaking during the trial, Ms Pelicot said: “For me this is the trial of cowardice, there is no other way to describe it.
“When you walk into a bedroom and see a motionless body, at what point (do you decide) not to react,” she addressed the men in the courtroom. She said there was no excuse for abusing her when she was unconscious.
"Why did you not leave immediately to report it to the police?," she asked. “It is time for society to look at this macho, patriarchal society and change the way it looks at rape.”
Pictured: Press waits for courtroom exits
10:02
Alex Croft
Comment | Where are all the men horrified by Gisele Pelicot’s rape trial?
09:55
Alex Croft
Gisèle Pelicot’s story is traumatic, extreme, and yet another example of men and their unfair, ingrained social power over women – her experience should be another moment when society says “enough is enough”.
And yet there is a group of people desperately distant from the urgent activism: men themselves.
Pelicot’s powerful testimony to a courtroom about her male attackers should be persuasive enough to reveal to men the gross injustice and deep-rooted unfairness at the heart of our patriarchal society.
It is now on men – all men – to speak out. The harrowing descriptions of a woman being drugged and raped cannot be ignored or passed off as an indefensible extreme which requires no vocal response. Silent disapproval or disgust is not enough.
Daniel Reast writes:
Watch live: Outside courtroom after guilty verdicts read out
09:52
Alex Croft
‘Shame changes sides’ - supporters’ placards outside the courthouse
09:50
Alex Croft
Supporters outside the courthouse have been holding placards in support of Gisèle Pelicot as she watched her abusers, including ex-husband Dominique Pelicot, have guilty verdicts read out against them.
“So that shame changes sides”, reads one. Another says: "All the women on earth support you, thank you Gisele".
Cheers outside courthouse as guilty verdicts came through
09:43
Alex Croft
A cheer erupted outside the court in the sourthern French city of Avignon as news of the first guilty verdicts emerged.
The trial has prompted rallies around France in support of Gisèle Pelicot, in a case which has appalled the world.
Ms Pelicot has become a symbol of courage and strength, particularly for victims of rape and sexual abuse, after staring down her abusers day after day in court for months.
47 men have now been convicted of rape, two with attempted rape and two with sexual assault.
Court finds all 51 of the accused guilty
09:30
Alex Croft
The French courts have found 47 men guilty of rape, two guilty of attempted rape and two guilty of sexual assault.
The verdicts on France’s worst ever mass rape case were read out this morning after a three-month long trial.
Local judge reads out guilty verdicts
09:26
Alex Croft
Local judge in the southern French town of Avignon, Roger Arata, has been reading out guilty verdicts for dozens of men accused of raping Gisèle Pelicot.
Mr Arata read out verdicts one after the other against the accused men.
“You are therefore declared guilty of aggravated rape on the person of Mme Gisèle Pelicot”, he told at least 20 of them.
Gisèle Pelicot: Inside the rape trial that shocked the world
09:23
Alex Croft
Sitting across a courtroom from the husband who drugged and raped her for a decade, along with the complete strangers he invited to join in the attacks, Gisèle Pelicot was the epitome of dignity.
After bravely choosing to waive her right to anonymity, the grandmother has looked each of her rapists in the eye during a gruelling four-month public trial which horrified the world.
The 72-year-old’s remarkable courage in the face of unfathomable abuse and her simple message - that she and other victims of sexual crimes have no reason to feel ashamed - has inspired conversat