The daughter of a Frenchman accused of allowing multiple strangers to rape his own wife after drugging her on Friday described him as ‘one of the worst sexual predators’ of recent times.
Caroline Darian, 46, was speaking on the fifth day of the trial of Dominique Pélicot, 71, and 51 other men, on Friday.
All are accused of the ‘aggravated rape’ of Gisèle Pélicot, also 71, and face up to 20 years in prison if convicted at the Vaucluse Criminal Court, in Avignon.
Ms Darian was herself secretely photographed in the nude by her father, as were her two sister-in-laws while taking a bath, the court heard.
This was at the same family home in Mazan, some 20 miles from Avignon, which Mr Pélicot had invited the men to after contacting them online.
Ms Darian is convinced that – like her mother – she was routinely drugged so that her father could attack her.
The photos taken of her were in a file entitled ‘Around my daughter, naked’, and apparently showed Ms Darian asleep, the court was told.
A tearful Ms Darian recalled seeing the two images for the first time, saying: ‘There was a woman who, apparently, was sleeping, lying on her side, with the light on. We could see her buttocks.
‘In the second photo, this woman is in the same position, wearing the same underpants, with the same staging. Her buttocks were showing.
‘I did not recognise myself, but the police officer pointed out a brown spot on her cheek, like mine.
‘There, I discovered myself and I understood that the man who was my father, in whom I had total confidence, who I thought had integrity, who respected his daughter, who was proud of her, who had always encouraged her, I discovered that in fact, my father had photographed me without my knowledge, naked.’
Ms Darian added: ‘How do you rebuild yourself from the ashes, when your father is undoubtedly one of the worst sexual predators of recent years?’
Ms Darian was followed into the witnesses box by her sister-in-law, Céline Pélicot, a mother of three young children.
Ms Pélicot, who is also in her 40s, said police confirmed to her that there were nude photos of her in the bath, along with similar images of another sister-in-law.
‘Where will these photos be when I’m dead?’ asked Ms Pélicot. ‘These degrading, humiliating shots were taken in the most intimate room.
‘Who did he [Dominique Pélicot] send them to? Where are they? Where will they be in five years, in ten years, when I’m dead?
‘Will my children one day come across them. Why did he [Dominique Pélicot] look at me like that?’
As the women gave their evidence, Mr Pélicot, a retired electrician, stared forward impassively. He remains in custody after being arrested in 2020.
Police found images on Mr Pélicot’s camera and laptop that showed multiple alleged rapes of his wife between 2011 and 2020.
Ms Pélicot, who has sat in court throughout the five days, has already described the moment her daughter, Caroline, found out about the allegations that her husband had drugged her before organising the rapes.
Ms Pélicot said: ‘When I told my daughter, she screamed like a wild beast. I will never forget this.
‘When I told my sons about this, I don’t think they really understood, they were withdrawn and didn’t react much. I think they were in a state of shock. They said don’t say such silly things.
‘That evening, the children rang all the time saying don’t disappear – they were worried I might die.’
Mr Pélicot was first caught in September 2020, when he was arrested for secretely filming up women’s skirts at a supermarket in Carpentras.
His devices were searched, and there were hundreds of photos and pornographic videos of women, including family members.
It was while in custody that Mr Pélicot reported a hard drive, hidden under a printer, which contained a file called Abuses.
It classified the nickname and telephone numbers of attackers, together with some 3,800 photos and videos of Gisèle Pélicot being raped, between 2011 and 2020.
Detectives have listed a total of 92 rapes committed by 72 men, 51 of whom have been identified.
Mr Pélicot moved his family from greater Paris in 1991, and later allegedly set up the sex ring.
It involved advertising on a site for ‘partners’ on an online forum called ‘Without Her Knowing’ on the coco.fr site.
Of the 83 men involved, 51 aged between 26 and 73 were identified and arrested by the police.
Mr Pélicot is said to have sedated his wife by putting Temesta – a powerful anxiolytic – into her evening dinner.
Alleged rapists involved in the case include civil servants, ambulance workers, soldiers, prison guards, nurses, a journalist, a municipal councillor, and truck drivers.
In a separate case, Mr Pélicot has been charged with raping and murdering a 23-year-old estate agent in Paris in 1991.
He has admitted one attempted rape in 1999, after DNA testing proved a case against him.
The Avignon aggravated rape case continues, and is due to last until December 21.
Fourteen of the other defendants have admitted rape, while the rest deny any wrongdoing.
