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In its third report, the independent specialist firm Egaé, which is investigating Abbé Pierre's past, reveals new facts of sexual assault which “took place from the 1960s to the 2000s, most of the time in France and sometimes abroad”. These new accusations bring to 33 the number of testimonies targeting the priest who died in 2007.
Abbé Pierre, long an iconic figure in France for his action towards the most deprived, is the target of nine new accusations of sexual violence, including rape of a minor and facts concerning members of his family, according to a report from the specialized firm Egaé published this Monday, January 13.
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Among the new revelations contained in this report, a member of Abbé Pierre's family told Egaé that she had suffered “sexual contact on her breasts and mouth at the end of the 90s” from him. Another testimony mentions a “penetrative sexual act on a minor boy”.
33 charges after three reports
The people who testify range from the “employee of a hotel in which Abbé Pierre stayed” to the “caregivers working in hospitals” where he was hospitalized, to a volunteer for a youth camp or a humanitarian mission, including a member of his family or even a flight attendant.
This is the third report from the firm commissioned by Emmaüs International, Emmaüs France and the Abbé Pierre Foundation to shed light on the actions of Henri Grouès, the priest's real name. In July 2023, the first series of revelations based on seven testimonies caused a shock wave in France as the priest, tireless defender of the most deprived, has long been an icon there.
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In September, a second report containing 17 new testimonies led the Abbé Pierre Foundation to announce its decision to change its name and Emmaüs to permanently close the place of memory dedicated to the priest located in Esteville, in Normandy.
A system that “can be part of the organization”
“The crescendo of reports (from Egaé, editor’s note) shows that there is manipulation, strategy, threats, blackmail, pressure and, sometimes, what may be the responsibility of an organization,” said Tarek Daher, general delegate of Emmaüs France, interviewed Monday by the newspaper The Parisian. “All of this put together paints the portrait of a predator who commits extremely serious things,” he added.
The Conference of Bishops of France (CEF) said it was “horrified” by the new revelations. In mid-September, the CEF opened access to the documents, without waiting for the deadline of 75 years after the death of Abbé Pierre in 2007.
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And the revelations should not stop there, since according to the Egaé firm, the latest testimonies “absolutely do not allow us to draw up an exhaustive inventory of Abbé Pierre's behavior”, he insists in his report, reporting “other testimonies, sometimes anonymous or incomplete”.
