AVIGNON, France (Reuters) – A French court found all 51 defendants guilty on Thursday in a mass rape case including Dominique Pelicot, who repeatedly drugged his then wife, Gisele, and allowed dozens of strangers into the family home to rape her.
Here are brief profiles of the men who received the longest sentences. All have 10 days to decide whether to appeal their sentences.
DOMINIQUE PELICOT, 72, married Gisele in 1973. The couple, who are now divorced, had three children and Gisele said she had thought that they had a happy marriage. Professionally, Pelicot appeared to have struggled, working as an electrician and then in real estate, but having to ask family members for loans. Addressing the court in September, he said he had had a difficult upbringing and had himself been a victim of rape. He said he had wanted his wife to participate in partner swaps and her refusal, together with trauma from his youth, had contributed to triggering his abusive behaviour. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison on Thursday.
ROMAIN VANDEVELDE, 63, had a torrid childhood, according to court documents. The fourth of nine children, his home was extremely violent and he was raped as a child. He got married, joined the army and later divorced. He went to the Pelicots’ home six times in 2019 and 2020, telling the court he had been lonely. He acknowledged knowing he was HIV positive when he raped Gisele without wearing a condom. He said he was being treated for the disease and could not transmit the virus. He denied the rape charges and was sentenced to 15 years in prison.
DOMINIQUE DAVIES, 45, a truck driver and ex-soldier, raped Gisele during six visits to the Pelicots’ home, beginning in 2015. Davies, who grew up in a foster home, told police he started visiting the now-closed coco.fr website where he linked up with Dominique Pelicot because of his wife’s lack of sexual desire. The fact Gisele was “completely submissive and reduced to a sexual object contributed to his excitement,” according to the police report. He said he left his clothes outside the patio door of the Pelicots’ house so that he could flee quickly if Gisele woke up. In court, he acknowledged “the material facts” as evidenced by the video footage but said he had “had no intention of committing a criminal act.” He was sentenced to 13 years in prison.
CHARLY ARBO, 30, had a difficult childhood, with his parents separating when he was six and some negligence and violence reported from his past. Lonely and not very successful at school, he took odd jobs. The investigation’s psychological analysis found he was intellectually immature and struggling with low self-esteem and an addiction to cannabis. He went to the Pelicots’ house six times between 2018 and 2020. On the first occasion, he was 22 and Gisele was 64. He was sentenced to 13 years in jail.
JEROME VILELA, 46, visited the Pelicots’ home six times in little more than three months in 2020. He told investigators he had had a difficult childhood, with unloving parents and bullying at school. He was once a volunteer fireman but struggled with a sex addiction and had a history of infidelity and breakups. The father of three children, he admitted the rape charges and said he knew Gisele had been drugged. He was sentenced to 13 years in jail.
JEAN-PIERRE MARECHAL, 63, was the only defendant not accused of raping or abusing Gisele Pelicot. Instead, encouraged by Dominique Pelicot, he drugged his own wife and let Pelicot come to his home on several occasions to rape her. Court documents say he had a difficult childhood: his mother was an alcoholic and his father sexually abused him and other family members. He worked at a garden centre and had no criminal record prior to his arrest. Some of his six children testified on his behalf. He was sentenced to 12 years in prison.
(Reporting by Juliette Sabkhiro, Gabriel Stargardter and Crispian Balmer, Editing by Timothy Heritage)
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