Man Accused of Raping French Woman Who Was Drugged by Her Husband Testifies He Thought ‘It Was a Game’

Mar. 15, 2025

Gisèle Pelicot.Photo:Christophe SIMON/getty

Gisele Pelicot (C) looks on, next to her lawyer Stephane Babonneau (R), at the Avignon courthouse during the trial of her former partner Dominique Pelicot accused of drugging her for nearly ten years and inviting strangers to rape her at their home in Mazan, a small town in the south of France, in Avignon, on September 16, 2024. A court in the southern town of Avignon is trying Dominique Pelicot, a 71-year-old retiree, for repeatedly raping and enlisting dozens of strangers to rape his heavily sedated wife in her own bed over a decade. Fifty other men, aged between 26 and 74, are also on trial for alleged involvement, in a case that has horrified France. The court proceedings, which runs until December, are open to the public at the request of Dominique Pelicot’s ex-wife and victim

Christophe SIMON/getty

A man identified only as Lionel R., a grocery store worker and father of three, was the first of the accused to testify in the mass rape trial and admitted to a court in Avignon, France, that he had raped Gisèle Pelicot in 2018, but said he had not intended to, according to French outletFrance 24and U.K. newspapersThe TimesandThe Guardian.

Appearing in court on Thursday, Sept. 19, Lionel, 44, claimed Dominique, 71, told him that his wife liked having sex with other men while sedated, according to the U.K. paper.

Scene outside the Avignon courthouse on Sept. 17.CHRISTOPHE SIMON/AFP via Getty

dominique pelicot france rape case 09 17 24

CHRISTOPHE SIMON/AFP via Getty

He told the court of Dominique, per France 24, “He tells me that he’s in a relationship, he makes me a rather unusual proposal to have sex with his wife, he tells me that she’ll be asleep, talks to me about sleeping pills, tells me that she takes them or that he gives them to her, it’s not clear. I’m not asking too many questions, I was convinced it was a game at the time.”

“There was talk of medical drugs. Sometimes of her taking them and sometimes of him administering them to her,” Lionel added, according toThe TimesandThe Guardian. “I never imagined that she might not be part of this game … My greatest error was not to ensure that she was conscious and consenting.”

PerThe Times, Lionel told the court he was invited to the couple’s home in Mazan, near Avignon, and had sex with Dominque’s wife for 30 minutes upon his instructions. But he claimed when Gisèle began to move, Dominique “told me to leave the room, and that’s when I realized that something was wrong,” Lionel said.

“Since I never obtained Mrs. Pelicot’s consent, I have no choice but to accept the facts,” he continued, per the outlet. “When I got in my car that day, I didn’t say to myself, ‘I’m going to rape this woman.’ ”

Offering an apology to Gisèle, Lionel added, “I am sorry, I can only imagine the nightmare you’ve lived through … and I am part of this nightmare.”

Gisèle Pelicot (far center) in court alongside her daughter Caroline Darian.CHRISTOPHE SIMON/AFP via Getty

Gisele pelicot husband rape case france avignon 09 02 24

On Tuesday, Sept. 17, Dominique appeared in court and said in his first testimony: “I am a rapist like the others in this room,” per theBBC,France 24and French outletLe Parisien.

“They all knew, they cannot say the contrary,” Dominique told the court, per the outlet.

“They all knew her condition before they came, they knew everything, they can’t say otherwise,” Dominique added, according toLe Parisien.

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“Even if it’s paradoxical, I never considered my wife as an object, unfortunately, the videos show the opposite,” he said, per the outlet, adding that he regrets what he did.

The alleged acts are reported to have taken place between 2011 and 2020.

If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, please contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) or go torainn.org.

source: people.com

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