A French woman whose husband is accused of inviting men to rape her testifies in court
A woman who was allegedly drugged by her now ex-husband so that she could be raped while unconscious by other men has testified in a court in France about her yearslong ordeal
AVIGNON, France (AP) — A woman who was allegedly drugged by her now ex-husband so that she could be raped by other men while she was unconscious testified Thursday that her world collapsed when police uncovered the years of alleged abuse.
Speaking in a calm and clear voice, Gisèle Pélicot detailed with impressive composure the horror of discovering that her former spouse had systematically filmed the dozens of suspected rapes — storing thousands of images that police investigators later found.
“It’s unbearable,” she told the court in the southern French city of Avignon in an hour of testimony. "I have so much to say that I don’t always know where to start.”
Dominique Pélicot, now 71, and 50 other men are standing trial on charges of aggravated rape and face up to 20 years in prison. The trial started on Monday and is expected to run until December. Thursday marked the first time that Gisèle Pélicot, also in her 70s, had testified.
