FOCUS – As the Mazan rape trial opens on Monday, highlighting the scourge of chemical submission, many clichés still circulate about this phenomenon that is still little known to the general public.
51 accused for one victim. The trial of the sprawling Mazan rape case opens in Avignon on Monday. The main accused, a retiree from this small village in Vaucluse, is accused of having drugged his wife for ten years in order to sexually submit her to several dozen other men he recruited via websites. This historic trial, which is expected to last four months, highlights the scourge of chemical submission, which puts hundreds of victims under its control each year.
This phenomenon, which consists of the administration for criminal purposes (rape, acts of pedophilia) or offences (intentional violence, theft) of psychoactive substances without the victim’s knowledge or under threat, is still largely outsourced in France. MoDem MP Sandrine Josso, drugged without her knowledge by Loire senator Joël Guerriau last November, has also been entrusted with a government mission on chemical submission. The objective: to form recommendations to crack down on this scourge, by measuring the effectiveness of existing systems and by precisely estimating the number of victims.
In 2021, 721 suspicious reports were recorded, nearly 85% of which were after complaints were filed, according to the latest survey by the National Agency for the Safety of Medicines, which released its latest figures on chemical submission in 2021. Of these, 82 are classified as submissions by the survey. “likely”when they are corroborated by a toxicological analysis or confessions concerning its use by the aggressor, and when the clinical data agree with the chronology of the facts. Figures that are still largely underestimated, the investigation nevertheless points out. It is also clear that preconceived ideas about these phenomena of control persist.
GHB is not the drug primarily used
As every year, psychoactive drugs are mostly incriminated (in 56% of cases), used in particular for their sedative properties such as Tramadol. However, there is a clear increase in non-medicinal substances, 44% compared to 28% in 2020. MDMA, alcohol and cannabis are cited at the top, far from the persistent cliché according to which GHB would be the only one “date rape drug”. In reality, GHB was only used in 4 cases out of 82 submissions. “likely” identified by the survey. It should be noted that among victims over 15 years old, alcoholic beverages are the main suspected vector of chemical submission. Non-alcoholic beverages, food and rolled cigarettes are also found in products containing the incriminated substances.
Chemical submission doesn’t just happen in nightclubs
The taking of the product without the knowledge of the victims or under threat occurs mainly in a private context (42.6% of cases of probable chemical submission). The Modem MP Sandrine Josso was notably drugged by the senator Joël Guerriau during a dinner at his home, while she presented him as “a friend for ten years”. Party venues, on the other hand, come out on top of the list of mentions (35.4% of cases) for all suspicious reports.
Regarding the cases of “chemical vulnerability”which in the survey designate the state of fragility of a person induced by the consumption of psychoactive substances and therefore make them more vulnerable to a criminal or delinquent act (291 victims in 2021), consumption takes place mainly in a festive environment (52.6% of cases). On the other hand, the aggression takes place mainly in private places (40%).
The victims are not only women
While the majority of victims of probable chemical submission (57 cases out of the 82 recorded in 2021) are female, there are nevertheless 25 men. 22 cases of control also concern minors, including 15 under the age of 15.
Submission is not just about sexual assault
Although sexual assault remains the main assault reported in suspicious reports (75.5% of cases) and in both women (77.8%) and men (48%), chemical submission is also associated with physical violence, kidnapping, theft or, more rarely, vandalism. In fact, nearly one in three victims shows signs of physical violence, the survey shows, and nearly one in two also report amnesia of the facts.
The perpetrators are not necessarily unknown to the victims
In cases of probable chemical submission, the perpetrators are often known to the victims, in 41.5% of cases. In cases of minors under 15, the aggressors are even close to the victims in half of the situations. In cases of “chemical vulnerability”the alleged perpetrators are both people known and unknown to the victims and act through “opportunism” or by premeditation.
What to do if you suspect chemical submission?
There are many warning signs: nausea, dizziness, amnesia, feeling of disinhibition, confusion, drowsiness, etc. In the event of a proven or suspected attack, it is imperative to preserve the suspected vector of the incriminated substance (drink, food, etc.). It is also advisable to have your hair analyzed, which preserves the submission agent longer than blood or urine.
