On the third day of the much-touted trial in Avignon of a group rapeGiselle Peliko, 72, spoke for the first time.
Peliko testified against 51 men, including her husband of 50 years, Dominique. All are accused of rape.
Court documents say Dominique Pélicot, 71, admitted to police that he derived satisfaction from watching other men have sex with his unconscious wife. Several defendants in the case dispute the rape charge against them, claiming they thought they were engaging in consensual sex play.
But Giselle Pelicot told the court she “never participated” in the sex acts and never pretended to be asleep.
This is a case that shocked her Francealthough it will be a public trial. Gisele waived her right to anonymity to shift the “shame” back to the defendants, her legal team said previously.
How did she know about the rapes?
Speaking on Thursday, she said she was speaking out for “all the women who have been drugged without knowing it… so that no woman suffers”. She recalled the moment in November 2020 when police asked her to appear for a statement alongside her husband. He had recently been caught photographing women lifting their skirts in a supermarket and Gisele told the court she believed the police meeting was a formality related to the incident.
“The police officer asked me about my sex life,” he told the court. “I told him I had never been into partner swapping. I said I was the wife of one person. I would not tolerate any man’s hands on me except my husband’s.”
“But after an hour the officer said: “I’m going to show you some things you won’t find pleasant”. He opened a folder and showed me a photo.
“I did not recognize either the man or the woman sleeping in the bed. The officer asked, “Ma’am, is this your bed and nightstand?” It was difficult to recognize me dressed in an unfamiliar manner. He then showed me a second photo and a third.
“It was unbearable”
I asked him to stop. It was unbearable.. I was inactive, in my bed and a man was raping me. My world fell apart.”
Giselle stated that until then the marriage had been generally happy and that she and her husband had overcome some financial and health difficulties. She said she forgave the skirt incident after he promised her it was an isolated incident.
“Everything we had built together was gone. Our three children, our seven grandchildren. We were the perfect couple. I just wanted to disappear. But I had to tell my children that their father was in custody. I asked my son-in-law to stay with my daughter when I told him that her father had raped me and that he had let me be raped by other people. He let out a scream, the sound of which is still etched in my mind.”
The next few days
In the coming days, the court will hear more evidence from the investigation into how Dominique allegedly contacted men through sex chat websites and invited them to her country home in Mazan, a town northeast of Avignon.
Police say the men were given strict instructions. They had to park some distance from the house to avoid attracting attention and wait up to an hour for the sleeping pills he gave Gisèle to take effect.
They also claim that once inside the house, they were instructed to undress in the kitchen and then warm their hands with hot water or a radiator. Smoke and perfume were not allowed in case they woke Giselle. Condoms were not mandatory. No money changed hands. According to the investigation, Dominique watched and filmed the process, creating an archive on the hard drive with approximately 4,000 photos and videos.
Police say they have evidence of around 200 rapes that occurred between 2011 and 2020initially at their home on the outskirts of Paris, but mostly in Mazan, where they moved in 2013. Investigators say just over half of the rapes were committed by her husband. Most of the other men lived a few miles away.
He recognized a
Asked by the judge on Thursday if she knew any of the defendants, Giselle said she only recognized one.He was our neighbor. He came to check on our bikes. I saw him at the oven. He was always nice. I had no idea he was coming to rape me.”
The judge then reminded Giselle that, in order to uphold the presumption of innocence, it had been agreed in court not to use the word rape, but rather “sex scene.” She responded: “I just think they need to acknowledge the facts. When I think about what they did, I feel so disgusted. They should at least have the responsibility to acknowledge what they did.”
After the truth was revealed, Giselle discovered that she was a carrier of four sexually transmitted diseases. “I had no sympathy for any of the accused. One who was HIV positive came six times. Not once did my husband express any concern for my health.” he said.
After speaking for two hours in front of Dominic and the other defendants, he said: “Inside me there is a scene of destruction. The facade may seem solid… but behind it…”
Source: BBC