- Father of two Andy Rodriguez is one of 50 men accused of raping Gisele Pelicot
A man accused of raping the wife of the Monster of Avignon has told a court he only went to church because he had “nothing else to do on New Year’s Eve”.
Andy Rodriguez, 37, a father of two, is one of 50 men suspected of raping Dominque Pelicot’s wife, Gisele, after giving her tranquilizers.
Pelicot played out a nightmare that has lasted for ten years. Mrs. Pelicot has renounced her right to anonymity and has become a symbol for French women. This case has shocked the country.
Farm worker Rodriguez told the court in Avignon that he has been an “alcoholic since he was 14 and a regular cocaine user”. He admits having sex with Ms Pelicot but denies rape.
He, like many others, claims they had no idea she was drugged and assumed it was all part of a “consensual scenario” between Pelicot and his wife, both 71.
Gisele Pelicot arrives at the Palais de Justice in Avignon, France this morning
Dominique Pelicot, who allegedly drugged and raped his wife Gisele Pelicot, appears at his trial with 50 co-defendants at the courthouse in Avignon, France, September 17, 2024
The 71-year-old arrives with her lawyer at the trial of her ex-husband and 50 other men accused of raping her
Rodriguez described in his testimony how he had a swinging experience before meeting Pelicot on New Year’s Eve 2018 at his home in Mazan, near Avignon.
Rodriguez said: ‘I was in a bar once and a man came up to me and said, ‘My wife likes you, do you want to sleep with her while I watch? ‘
‘I agreed and it happened that same night, with Pelicot I met him on New Year’s Eve, because I had nothing else to do.
‘I had a fight with my brothers because of my drinking and drug addiction, so I went to Pelicot’s house.
“It was never my intention to rape Mrs. Pelicot.”
The court heard that Rodriguez was 31 at the time, married with two children, while Mrs Pelicot was 66 – more than twice his age.
Rodriguez continued: ‘I had taken a bath, I had aftershave on, I had gotten ready. An hour after we exchanged messages on Coco.fr (swinging site) I was at his house.’
As he gave his testimony, Mrs. Pelicot listened attentively, occasionally shaking her head. Her son David sat beside her.
In another case, Pelicot has been charged with raping and murdering a 23-year-old real estate agent in Paris in 1991
Dominique Pelicot has been dubbed ‘the Monster of Avignon’ after he admitted drugging his wife and allowing strangers to rape her in their marital bed
On the other side of the courtroom, Pelicot sat in a glass box, dressed in a light gray fleece sweater, resting his cheek on his finger as he watched the proceedings.
At one point David left the courtroom and Pelicot looked at his son, but he ignored him.
Meanwhile, the court has stirred controversy by sending emails to media reporting on the case, asking them to remember that “the judiciary must be able to carry out its functions, free from any pressure, in complete independence.”
It added: ‘The trial must take place in a calm environment conducive to the manifestation of the truth and respect for the rights of the parties.’
Dominique Pélicot is accused of recruiting men online to repeatedly attack his wife over a period of 10 years
But a representative of the local association of court reporters responded: ‘Can you tell us what ‘pressure’ you are referring to?
‘And whether that pressure comes from the behavior of the journalists present or from the work they produce? I dare not imagine that.’
Last week, Nadia El Boiroumi, a lawyer representing two of the suspects, found herself in the spotlight after she posted a video of herself dancing to the Wham hit “Wake Me Up Before You Go Go.”
She denied there was any connection between Pelicot’s actions of drugging his wife and insisted she was targeting critics who told them to “get up early” if they wanted to outsmart her.