Dominique Pélicot invited strangers from the internet to rape his wife while she was drugged
A pensioner accused of drugging his wife dozens of times so strangers could rape her led twin lives as a ‘caring’ family man and ‘highly dangerous’ sexual deviant, a court has heard.
Dominique Pélicot, 71, allegedly invited 72 men he met online to rape his wife Gisèle in their home in Avignon, France, over a nine-year period.
Prosecutors say he would secretly lace her dinner with a high dose of anxiety-reducing drugs so she would stay unconscious after going to sleep.
He is on trial with 51 of the alleged rapists, who are aged between 26 and 73 and include civil servants, paramedics, truck drivers and prison guards.
On Monday a court in Avignon heard from psychiatrists who had carried out evaluations of Pélicot, who is a retired electrician.
Among various testimonies reported in local media, one said he showed signs of ‘paraphilic deviance’ in which he had a strong appetite for sexual acts on non-consenting victims.
This included a mix of voyeurism and somnophilia, or sexual arousal towards sleeping people.
Gisèle waived her right to anonymity through the trial (Picture: Simon Ashton)
His wife’s unconsciousness ‘[allowed] him to increase his feeling of control’, a psychiatrist said.
Another described Pélicot as a ‘highly’ dangerous criminal who used his wife as ‘bait’ to satisfy twisted sexual fantasies.
The 71-year-old reportedly said during questioning that he took ‘pleasure in seeing his wife touched by someone else’ and had ‘an addiction stopping him from stopping’.
The experts compared Pélicot to Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, arguing he had a ‘two-sided personality’ allowing him to act like a normal husband during the day.
Pélicot’s daughter Caroline, right, said there had been ‘no hint’ of inappropriate behaviour(Picture: Simon Ashton)
His own wife said she saw him as a ‘great guy’ before learning of the horrors she’d been subjected to.
It’s understood she has seen photos of what happened to her, although it’s not clear how she was first alerted to these. After the discovery she was diagnosed with four sexually transmitted diseases.
Relatives described the defendant as a ‘very caring’ and ‘much loved’ grandfather.
His daughter, Caroline Darian, previously said: ‘I loved my father. I loved the image of the man I thought I knew. The image of this sane, caring, considerate man.
Pélicot is on trial along with 51 of the other alleged rapists involved
‘I knew him as a caring, considerate man who was affectionate father without any hint of an inappropriate look or unwelcomed touch. What hit was like a cataclysm.’
Pélicot is also accused of voyeurism offences committed against Caroline and his two stepdaughters.
Prosecutors say two photos of Caroline, unconscious and in her underwear, were found on his computer along with photos from a hidden camera showing his stepdaughers naked in their bathroom.
The family could only recall one or two incidents hinting at ‘disturbing’ behaviour, such as when one of his granddaughters saw him taking photos of her and her sister during a midnight swim in their pool.
One of the psychologists who …read more
Source:: Metro
