A French woman, whose husband allegedly drugged her and orchestrated sexual assaults with other men while she was unconscious, gave a chilling testimony in court on Thursday. Her husband, now 71, along with 50 other men, faces charges of aggravated rape and could be sentenced to up to 20 years in prison.
The woman, now in her 70s, recounted her shock upon discovering that her former husband had secretly recorded thousands of images of the assaults. She described the experience as “unbearable” and shared her struggle to find the right words to express her trauma. “There’s so much I want to say, but I don’t always know where to begin,” she testified in court in Avignon.
The trial, which began on Monday and is expected to continue until December, marks the first time the survivor has testified. She hopes her testimony will help prevent similar suffering for other women and emphasized her desire to stand in solidarity with victims of sexual crimes.
The horrors came to light when a security agent caught the woman’s husband taking inappropriate photos of women in a supermarket. Investigators found disturbing images and videos on his devices, showing men sexually assaulting the woman in their home while she was unconscious. Initially, the woman had described her husband as “a great guy” but left him after seeing the evidence. “For me, everything collapses,” she said, describing the assaults as “scenes of barbarity, of rape.”
According to investigators, the abuse began in 2011 and involved a complex system set up by the accused. He used a messaging website to invite men to sexually abuse his wife, following specific rules to ensure the assaults proceeded without detection.
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The woman, drugged with a mixture of Temesta and Zolpidem, contracted four sexually transmitted infections from the assaults. “I was sacrificed on the altar of vice,” she said, describing the assaults as treating her “like a rag doll, like a garbage bag.”
The accused recorded the assaults, which helped police identify most of the 72 suspects they were seeking. The trial features 50 men who deny some of the charges, claiming they were manipulated. The woman rejected these claims, asserting that the men acted with full knowledge of their actions. “They raped me in all conscience,” she stated.
The trial will continue with defendants appearing in small groups before a panel of five judges. Psychologists, psychiatrists, and computer experts are also scheduled to testify. Outside the courthouse, the survivor expressed her determination to fight for justice despite the overwhelming circumstances. “We will have to fight until the end,” she said.
