Ex-husband in French rape trial asks 'forgiveness' from family

Gisele Pelicot leaves the Avignon courthouse after hearing the defence's final plea at the trial of her former partner Dominique Pelicot. Photo / AFP

• Dominique Pelicot admitted to drugging his wife, Gisele Pelicot, for nearly a decade to facilitate rapes by strangers.
• Fifty men are on trial alongside Pelicot, with prosecutors seeking up to 20 years for aggravated rape.
• Gisele Pelicot, hailed as a feminist hero, waived her right to a closed trial and confronted her aggressors.

The Frenchman who has admitted to enlisting dozens of strangers to rape his heavily sedated wife has asked forgiveness from his family and hailed the courage of his now ex-spouse during his trial.

“I would like to start by hailing the courage of my ex-wife,” Dominique Pelicot said in his final statement to the court ahead of the verdict later in the week.

“I regret what I did, making [my family] suffer ... I ask them for forgiveness,” he said, asking the family to “accept my apologies”.

In a trial that shocked the country, Dominique Pelicot, 72, has admitted to drugging his then-wife Gisele Pelicot for almost a decade so he and strangers he recruited online could rape her.

Gisele Pelicot, 72, has become a feminist hero at home and abroad for refusing to be ashamed, waiving her right to a closed trial and standing up to her aggressors in court.

Alongside her ex-husband, 50 other men aged 27 to 74 are on trial, including one who did not abuse her but raped his own wife with Dominique Pelicot’s help.

Sitting in the glass defendants' box, Dominique Pelicot reaffirmed that he had told “the whole truth” since the beginning of the trial on September 2 in the southern French city of Avignon.

He also thanked the court for allowing him to remain seated on a special chair because of his fragile state of health, which “could have been interpreted as nonchalance” but which was not, he added.

He added that “I have been called many things” but “I rather intend to be forgotten,” saying he felt an “inner shame”.

“I can tell my whole family that I love them,” he said.

Turning to the five judges who will issue the verdict, he said: “There you go, you have the rest of my life in your hands.”

The verdict for him and the other defendants is expected this week but the process could be drawn out, presiding Judge Roger Arata said as he adjourned the trial.

“We will head to the deliberation chamber and will not leave until we have made our decision,” Arata told the court.

As she left the court, Gisele Pelicot was greeted with applause and shouts of “bravo Gisele!” by supporters.

On November 25, prosecutors requested the maximum possible sentence – 20 years behind bars – against Dominique Pelicot for aggravated rape.

The prosecution has requested 10 to 18 years in prison against the 49 defendants also charged with aggravated rape.

One more accused – facing the lesser charge of groping – risks up to four years in prison.

Several defence lawyers have attempted to shift the totality of the responsibility to Dominique Pelicot, arguing their clients were victims of a “monster” who had manipulated them into assaulting Gisele Pelicot.

- Agence France-Presse