Accused in France's mass rape trial apologizes to Gisele Pelicot

One of more than 50 men accused of raping Frenchwoman Gisele Pelicot in a mass rape case that has shocked the world told her in court on Thursday that he was sorry for what he did.

Lionel Rodriguez is among a small number of those accused who have admitted to raping Pelicot, who was abused by dozens of strangers over nearly a decade while knocked unconscious by drugs her husband Dominique gave her without her knowing.

Dominique Pelicot, who recruited the strangers online and invited them to the couple's family house to rape his wife, admitted to his crimes in court on Monday, saying: "I am a rapist, just like the others (the accused) in this room."

Dominique Pelicot, who has allegedly drugged and raped his wife Gisele Pelicot, appears during his trial with 50 co-accused at the courthouse in Avignon, France, September 17, 2024, in this courtroom sketch. Reuters

Rodriguez, 44, a father of three, said on Thursday, speaking to 72-year-old Gisele Pelicot: "I am sorry. I can only imagine the nightmare you've lived through... and I am part of this nightmare. I know my apologies won't change what happened, but I wanted to tell you that."

The case has triggered protests across France in support of Gisele Pelicot, who asked for the trial not to be held behind closed doors to shed light on the abuse.

The fact that dozens of seemingly ordinary men, currently aged 26 to 74, and from all walks of life, could rape an unconscious woman has attracted worldwide attention and turned the trial into a symbol of the pervasiveness of sexual violence.

Rodriguez admitted during the investigation that he had raped Gisele Pelicot. In court on Thursday, he repeated that he had not meant to rape her but realizes that he did.

"If I had known she wasn't aware (of what would happen) I wouldn't have gone there," he said. "I should have checked that she was okay with it. I didn't talk to her, so I could not get her consent. I feel guilty for what I did."

People attend a demonstration in support of rape victims and Gisele Pelicot, who was allegedly drugged and raped by men solicited by her husband Dominique Pelicot, as the trial continues, at the Place de la Republique in Paris, France, September 14, 2024Reuters

"I never told myself: I will rape that woman," he said. But "I'm guilty of rape," he said, adding he should have left when he saw she was unconscious, and that it was cowardly of him not to have said anything.

Rodriguez also tried to shift some of the blame onto Dominique Pelicot, telling the court he had done what the husband had told him to do.

What is the case

Seventy-one-year-old Dominique Pelicot is on trial in France accused of drugging his wife and inviting dozens of strangers to rape her in their home over nearly a decade in a case that has shocked the country.

He offered sex with his wife on a website, and filmed the abuse, the prosecutor's office said. Fifty other men accused of raping his wife when she was knocked unconscious by the drugs are also on trial.

They each face up to 20 years in jail if found guilty.

Due to the drugs, Pelicot's wife had been entirely unaware of the rapes, which took place at their home in the southern French town of Mazan, until police told her about them four years ago, her lawyers have said."

She knew nothing of what was inflicted on her. She had no memory of the rapes she suffered," lawyer Antoine Camus told France Bleu radio.

French media including Le Monde have said that police stumbled upon Pelicot's thousands of pictures and video of his wife's abuse when investigating him after several women said he was using his phone to film under their skirts in a supermarket.