Dominique Pélicot, 71, has told a court he started arranging for strangers to rape his wife, Gisele, because he was not busy after retirement, as the case continues
Dominique Pélicot, dubbed ‘the Monster of Avignon’, has told a court he began arranging for dozens of strangers to rape his wife because he was not kept busy after retirement.
The 71-year-old is accused of regularly drugging his wife Gisele Pélicot, 72, before inviting strangers he met online into their bedroom to repeatedly rape her . Officers have listed a total of 92 rapes committed by 72 men, 51 of whom have been identified.
Last week, Pelicot missed several days of his trial in France as he was rushed from court feeling unwell and in pain, he said. It is also claimed he was found vomiting and fainting in his cell before being rushed to hospital.
Now, however, he has made it to the dock. A jury heard he started the attacks on his wife because he was ‘utterly idle’ in retirement.
Asked by a defence lawyer how it felt to have ‘picked up dozens of strangers’, Pélicot said: “I didn’t pick anyone up, they came and got me themselves. They asked me and I said yes. They agreed and came to my home. I didn’t handcuff anyone to my home. I trusted these men who knew why they were coming.”
Pélicot later faced his only daughter, Caroline Darian, in court. She had earlier said he also drugged her, before he took nude photos of her. He said: “Caroline, I never drugged you or raped you. It’s not possible to say that. I never did that.”
Earlier today he told proceedings of his wife: “I loved her well for 40 years and loved her badly for 10 years. I ruined everything, I lost everything. I should never have done that.”
Discussing his ‘Jekyll and Hyde’ assessment by psychiatrists, Pélicot said he “was not born perverted”. But he added: “We can’t say my life hasn’t been influenced by that. Side A and Side B are the same man, but with addictions.” Asked when he was first perverted, Pélicot replied: “We try to deal with what we have experienced. We become perverted when we meet someone who gives us the possibility. Then we become perverted, yes.”
Pélicot also claimed he also ‘still loves’ his three adult children. He also praised his daughter for founding a protest group against so-called “chemical submission” – the drugging of rape victims.
The trial continues. (Mirror)