The French woman at the centre of today’s trial over the multiple rape of the Monster of Avignon accused her attackers of being “degenerate”.
Gisèle Pélicot, 71, appeared again as a witness on Wednesday to ask the court to allow her to watch horrific videos showing her being drugged and raped by dozens of men.
Her husband Dominque, 73, is accused of raping her and sexually abusing her with at least 50 other men while she was under the influence of drugs.
Mrs Pélicot told the court: ‘I did not give my consent for a second to Mr Pélicot, nor to the men standing behind me.
“Since I arrived in this courtroom, I have been humiliated. I have been called an alcoholic, an accomplice of Mr. Pelicot.
Gisèle Pélicot arrives at the court in Avignon, France
Gisèle has attended every day of the trial since it began about two weeks ago
“I’ve heard everything. You have to have a certain amount of patience to endure everything I have to hear.”
As the cross-examination continued, Mrs. Pelicot raised her voice, looked at the accused and said, “To me they are degenerate people.”
On Tuesday, Pélicot pleaded guilty to all charges, saying he had contacted his co-defendants through online chat rooms before filming their brutal crimes in his parents’ home.
“I admit the charges in their entirety,” Pélicot said. “I am a rapist, just like everyone else in this courtroom. They cannot say otherwise.”
As cross-examination continued, Pélicot continued to insist that he “still loves” his ex-wife.
“I loved her very much for 40 years and loved her badly for 10 years,” Pélicot said. “I ruined everything, I lost everything. I should never have done that.”
Pélicot said he started the attacks on his wife because he was “completely lazy” during his retirement.
He also claimed that at one point he “contemplated suicide” after discovering his wife was having an affair.
Pélicot has been in custody since 2020, after he was first arrested on suspicion of drugging and then raping Ms. Pélicot, inviting men he had approached online to do the same.
Dominique Pélicot is accused of recruiting men online to repeatedly attack his wife over a period of 10 years
Last week, psychologists described Pélicot as a “Jekyll and Hyde” character who appeared to be a normal husband by day but drugged his wife at night so strangers could rape her.
Pélicot was first arrested in September 2020 for secretly filming under women’s skirts in a supermarket in Carpentras.
His equipment was searched and hundreds of pornographic videos and photos of women were found.
While in custody, Mr Pélicot reported a hard drive hidden under a printer containing a file called ‘Abuses’.
Between 2011 and 2020, there are approximately 3,800 photos and videos of the rape of Gisèle Pélicot.
Detectives have recorded a total of 92 rapes, committed by 72 men. 51 of them have been identified.
The Pélicot sex club used advertising on a ‘partners’ site on an online forum called ‘Without Her Knowing’ on the website coco.fr.
Of the 83 men involved, 51, aged between 26 and 73, were identified and arrested by police.
Pélicot is said to have drugged his wife by adding Temesta, a powerful anti-anxiety drug, to her dinner.
Alleged rapists involved in the case include civil servants, ambulance workers, soldiers, prison guards, nurses, a journalist, a city councillor and truck drivers.
In another case, Pélicot is charged with the rape and murder of a 23-year-old real estate agent in Paris in 1991.
He admitted attempted rape in 1999 after DNA tests showed there was a case against him.
The case of aggravated rape in Avignon is expected to be heard until December 21.
Fourteen other suspects have also confessed to rape, while the rest deny committing any crime.