Here is Gisèle Pelicot’s hero. Her savior. The man she says gave her “saved his life”. The one to whom her first words were intended, on September 5, 2024, when she spoke before the Vaucluse criminal court: “First of all, I would like to thank Lieutenant Perret. » That day, Laurent Perret was not in the room. He was at work, at the Carpentras police station.
“Lolo, are you aware of what was just said? » On the phone, one of the police officers responsible for ensuring security for the trial told him: “All the journalists looked at each other. » In one sentence, he became the person to interview. “Everyone started looking for me. They called me at the police station, on my phone. I received a lot of requests. Even the BBC. Even an Indian channel! » Exhilarated the first days, this strong fifty-something quickly felt overwhelmed. “I am six years from retirement, I was at peace, and an extraordinary case had to happen to me. But it’s not my world, all that. »
Laurent Perret followed the procedure: he explained to journalists that he could not discuss the investigation without authorization and invited them to “contact the police communications department”. All were refused. This did not stop them from discussing his role. Following Gisèle Pelicot, some media portrayed him as a lieutenant. Others promoted him to captain or commissioner. He draws on his vape and blows: “I’m none of those things. I’m a peacekeeper, a police investigator, a basic cop. »
Secret
Accustomed to controlled communication (“Normally, when we dismantle a deal point, for example, the hierarchy reports to the press and that’s it”)he was surprised to find in articles “whole sentences of [ses] Audition minutes ». He still can’t believe it: “They quote me without having spoken to me. » He finds this « bizarre » et “not very good”. He realized that “all journalists had access to the procedure”which “violation of the secrecy of the investigation” was widespread and the presumption of innocence was quite abused. He says: “It’s as if the media wanted to do the trial before the trial. »
On October 2, Laurent Perret went to the Avignon court to greet the woman he calls “Madame Gisèle”. During the break, reporters recognized him. “On their phone, they all had a photo that I had posted in 1999 on Copains d’avant. » He never managed to delete his profile. Among the lot, a tall brown guy inspired him with a lot of sympathy. He saw her face again a little later on TV: “I told myself he was a famous journalist. » He memorized his name: Jean-Michel Décugis, from Parisian. And « Panama » agrees, when everything is over, he will give him an interview.
Skype
It seems to him that the journalists, eager for scenes and decisive moments, are all asking him the same question: “What made you press the button on the Skype app? » They know the story: on September 12, 2020, a retiree, caught filming under the skirts of customers at Leclerc in Carpentras, was taken to the police station. Laurent Perret was instructed to extract the five videos filmed at the supermarket and burn them onto a CD. “Given his age, he recognizes, we thought he was going to take a call to the law and that the matter would end there. » She could have, if Agent Perret had just done what he was asked. But there was this Skype logo, on one of the retiree’s two phones. The officer figured the man might have sent his images to someone.
When he opened the application, he saw a conversation arise – with a certain Rasmus – mentioning ten crushed Temesta tablets and a woman offered, sleeping, on a bed. “There, I made a mistake”, says the policeman. Seven weeks later, at the end of the investigation, Dominique Pelicot was back at the police station. In the meantime, the “voyeur grandpa” had transformed into “biggest sexual predator of the decade”.
“Hey, Laurent, let’s talk about your business”
Since the opening of the trial, Laurent Perret has followed the proceedings from time to time. First on the CNews banners, broadcast without sound in the open space where he works as in his living room. To keep up to date with the news, this is the channel he prefers, including an impression of ” serious ” emerges, he notes. “On BFM, it’s more childish. » It is said “with all respect [qu’il doit] to the son-in-law of Madame Gisèle »editor-in-chief at BFM TV. When he has time, Laurent Perret goes through the press review received every day at the office. It follows the publications of Provence a you Dauphiné Libéré on social networks. He sometimes clicks on a link and reads the first lines: “The rest is for the subscribers, but that’s enough for me. » He saw “turn on TikTok” the pleading of Stéphane Babonneau, one of Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyers. And then there are all these screenshots sent by his friends, accompanied by these few words: “Here, Laurent, we’re talking about your business. »
An article from Figaro “full of inventions” dismayed him, written by “a blonde who is often on TV”: “She tried to create a buzz but she wrote nonsense. » He was ready to take the time to set the record straight, he sent an email to the newspaper. His message went unanswered. Laurent Perret, on the other hand, appreciated the story of the affair signed by Élise Costa on Slate. When the court reporter contacted him, he did not know ” no way “ this site, but he accepted the principle of a telephone discussion ” on [son] felt.”
Vengeance
He also applauds the work of the magazine “Criminal Investigations” on W9. It is one of « cop shows » that Laurent Perret likes to watch. He gleans there “ideas for investigative techniques, some good questions for interrogations”. In the edition dedicated to the rapes of Mazana detail earned him ridicule from those around him: one of the 51 accused, who testified anonymously, was renamed Laurent. “That’s a little revenge from the journalists because you didn’t give them an interview”wanted to believe his friends.
He prefers to cite the passage where Michel Mary, an old backpacker from New detective who has become a pillar of Cyril Hanouna’s sets, says in his voice like a cat who has come back from everything: “I don’t think the policeman had a good night. Telling a woman that she has been raped is still relatively rare. » This attention touched Laurent Perret. Receive “men, women, children who describe the violence of which they have been victims”he was used to it. “But here the roles were reversed, it was up to me to tell a woman that she had been drugged by her husband and raped, not once, but dozens of times, by 73 potential individuals. »
Nuit
For a month, the preparation for this audition haunted him. He became irritable, woke up in the middle of the night, left his room, wrote down a question while his goldfish looked on and went back to bed. This lasted until the day before his interview with “Madame Gisèle”.
With the trial, Laurent Perret’s sleep problems resumed. “I relive everything, I see everything again”he said. Its “discovery of the rose pot”. His difficulty in retrieving Dominique Pelicot’s virtual conversations. His gesticulations at the window of the police station to catch the Wi-Fi of the Hôtel du Forum located on the street opposite. The astonishing images. The infinite violence they suggest. His transcriptions of the videos, and this antiphon: “Let’s see that Madame Pelicot is sleeping. » The identification of the 51 accused. Then the transmission of the file to the Avignon judicial police, better equipped for a case of such magnitude.
Medals
He gets annoyed by the shortcuts of “TV”. “I hear: “The Avignon PJ has dismantled”, but no, it’s the Carpentras police station, he insists. For once, it’s not 36 quai de Paname, it’s a small investigation department of four police officers. Must return to Caesar. » Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyers considered giving her the floor at the very end of the trial. He refused: “It’s too much for me, only Madame Gisèle should be in the light”he said, passing his right hand over his left, covered with Polynesian tattoos. A film director told him about a film project on the affair. Quietly, he articulates, stunned: “A guy will play my role”then he shakes his head. He repeats: “It’s too much for me. »
Recognition, however, remains a subject. During his career, he received letters of congratulations, bonuses, and two medals for his « courage » and his ” dedication “. There, nothing. His colleagues were surprised. Union officials sang the chorus of “forgotten from the trial”. Journalists relaunched him on this theme. “They wanted some crunch”deplores Laurent Perret.
Consent
By seeing that “Madame Gisèle’s head has traveled the world”he begins to believe that the media coverage of this trial will “contribute to changing mentalities on consent, masculinity, power relations between men and women”. He also thinks that victims will feel encouraged to file a complaint and “break the silence”. However, he is concerned about the hateful comments to which they are exposed, and the “climate of opinion” which risks influencing court decisions.
After his investigation into the rapes in Mazan, Laurent Perret, exhausted, wanted to change departments. He was appointed to the drug squad. Investigations fascinate him, but he must “partition everything”, “be super secretive”and can no longer walk without coming across “guys [qu’il a] sent to the hole ». For his retirement, he aspires to find his peace and quiet. He’s planning to get a campervan, because “freedom is being able to chat with a neighbor at the campsite without a second thought.”
