The trial of a French man, Dominique P, who allegedly drugged his wife and invited over 80 strangers to rape her over nearly a decade, began in Avignon, shocking the nation. Dominique P is accused of crushing sleeping tablets and anti-anxiety medication into his wife’s food or wine, rendering her unconscious, and then recruiting men from online chatrooms to rape and sexually abuse her.
Fifty men are also on trial for participating in these heinous acts, with the presiding judge granting the woman’s request for public hearings to ensure transparency in the case.
Dominique P was arrested in November 2020 after a security guard caught him filming women in a supermarket. A subsequent investigation revealed a USB drive with 20,000 images and videos documenting his wife’s repeated abuse, with nearly 100 incidents recorded.
France Shaken as Trial Begins for Man Accused of Drugging and Allowing Strangers to Rape His Wife Over a Decade
Since his arrest, Dominique P has admitted to his crimes, stating that he drugged, offered his wife to others, and filmed the assaults. Health records indicated that he had obtained a large quantity of sleeping pills, further supporting the allegations.
The trial presents a painful ordeal for the woman, who has no recollection of the abuse due to the drugs. She discovered the horrifying truth in 2020, years after the abuse began. Her lawyer described how she had been drugged to the point of a near-coma, and only realized something was wrong when she noticed unusual changes, like waking up with a new haircut she couldn’t remember getting. Initially, her symptoms were dismissed as signs of illness, with her husband accompanying her to doctors and attributing her condition to fatigue.
The public prosecutor and defense lawyers requested a closed-door trial to protect the dignity of those involved, citing the extreme violence and sensitive nature of the evidence. However, the woman’s legal team successfully argued for an open trial, emphasizing her desire for justice and public awareness of the atrocities she endured. The judges ruled in favor of a public trial, which is expected to last four months.
In addition to the charges related to his wife, Dominique P is also accused of the rape and murder of a 23-year-old estate agent in Paris in 1991, as well as the attempted attack on another estate agent who managed to escape. DNA evidence has linked him to the earlier crime. If convicted, Dominique P and the 50 other defendants face up to 20 years in prison for aggravated rape.
