Lionel R, 44, one of 50 men accused, apologises to his victim and tells the court: ‘I have no choice but to accept the facts’

One of 50 men accused of raping the French woman Gisèle Pelicot after she was drugged by her husband accepted the charges on Thursday, saying he was sorry for what he did.

Lionel R, a 44-year-old supermarket worker and father of three, was among dozens of men accused of participating in the mass rape of Pelicot over a decade in a trial that has shocked France.

Former wife of Dominique Pélicot, who allegedly recruited strangers to assault her, calls accused men ‘degenerates’

The former wife of a French man accused of recruiting strangers to rape her while she was drugged has told a court she never consented and the men who allegedly assaulted her were “degenerates”.

Appearing at the trial of her former husband, Dominique Pélicot, and 50 men he allegedly invited to rape her, Gisèle Pélicot, 72, said: “I never, even for a single second, gave my consent to Mr Pélicot or those other men.”

Trial of retired electrician, 71, and 50 other men had been adjourned while he was taken to hospitals for tests

The trial of Dominique Pélicot and 50 other men accused of rape will resume on Tuesday after he was deemed well enough to attend court.

The hearing was adjourned last week after the 71-year-old retired electrician, who has admitted drugging his wife, Gisèle, and inviting up to 90 men to rape her while she was unconscious and he filmed the attacks, was reportedly diagnosed with a urine infection and prostate problems and taken to hospital for tests.

Dominique Pélicot has been excused from court because of poor health and proceedings could be delayed if he remains ill for a long period

The trial of a French man accused of recruiting strangers to rape his heavily sedated wife has been adjourned until Monday after the suspect was excused from attending in light of his deteriorating health, the court has said.

Should Dominique Pélicot, 71, be unavailable to attend proceedings for a lengthy period of time, then the trial will be postponed to a later date, the presiding judge, Roger Arata, said on Thursday.

Trial of Dominique Pélicot hears that he allegedly provided sedatives to man he had met in a chatroom

The trial of a French man who recruited dozens of strangers to rape his drugged wife has heard how another man living in the same area copied the tactics to drug and rape his own wife.

Dominique Pélicot, 71, is on trial in the southern city of Avignon for repeatedly raping, and enlisting dozens of strangers to rape, his heavily sedated wife in her own bed over a period of a decade in the southern village of Mazan. Fifty other men aged between 26 and 74 are also on trial for their alleged involvement.

Dominique Pélicot, 71, accused of raping, and recruiting strangers to rape, sedated wife for a decade

A French man on trial for recruiting dozens of strangers to rape his drugged wife without her knowledge was a “self-centred” manipulator with a split personality, experts have told a court.

Dominique Pélicot, 71, is on trial in the southern city of Avignon for repeatedly raping, and enlisting dozens of strangers to rape, his heavily sedated wife in her own bed over a decade.

Dominique Pélicot has admitted drugging his wife Gisèle and inviting strangers to abuse her over a decade

The daughter of a French man on trial for enlisting strangers to rape his drugged wife has described him as probably “one of the worst sexual criminals in the past 20 years”.

Dominique Pélicot, a 71-year-old retiree, has admitted to abusing his wife without her knowledge between 2011 and 2020, drugging her with sleeping pills and then recruiting dozens of strangers to rape her in her own home.