A vast network discovered: Rapes in Mazan, this is how wicked Dominique Pelicot, the victim’s ex-husband, was

It is difficult to imagine how meticulously Dominique Pelicot, the main defendant in the Mazan case, proceeded. An investigation provides insight into planned rapes. At the center of the story is a dating site, well known among users.

Warning: This text contains disturbing content about sexual violence and drug abuse. It is not suitable for particularly sensitive readers.

A crime of incredible proportions is shaking France: Dominique Pelicot, a 72-year-old man from the village of Mazan in southern France, incited at least 70 men to systematically rape his wife Gisèle Pelicot over the course of a decade.

According to exclusive information obtained by CNN in police reports, Gisèle Pelicot was abused more than 200 times, a crime meticulously planned by her husband.

Pelicot used online forums, including the Coco.fr platform, to recruit men who would then rape Pelicot’s wife. In chats with names like “Without His Knowing,” Pelicot exchanged intimate photos and videos of his unaware wife, whom he had previously drugged.

If you are or have been a victim of sexual violence or cyberbullying, you can find help here:

From firefighters to journalists and nurses, men of all ages and backgrounds raped Gisèle Pelicot on the spot. The youngest accused is now 27 years old, the oldest 74.

All of the men accused in Avignon lived within 50 kilometers of Pelicot’s home.

A network of abuse

Police reports show that conversations were transferred to Skype after initial contact via Coco. The victim’s ex-husband then held the first conversations via Skype, also showing the attackers live images of his unaware wife, and then moved the communication to text messages and private platforms.

The 72-year-old not only shared intimate photos and videos of his wife with other men, but also recordings of her during the rapes. These materials were specifically used by Pelicot to encourage other men to commit similar crimes against their partners.

And indeed: the messages recovered during the investigations show that many of the authors expressed their admiration for Pelicot and declared that they would like to do the same with their partners.

Another defendant in the trial is not accused of raping Gisèle Pelicot, but of drugging his wife to incite Pelicot to abuse her too.

The network was discovered by another criminal offense

Gisèle Pelicot testified that she knew nothing of her husband’s actions. Only after some time did unwanted drug use and sexual abuse leave their mark on his body. Her then-husband accompanied her to several doctor’s visits, during which she complained of memory loss and pelvic pain, according to court documents.

Only in 2020 did the authorities track down Dominique Pelicot. He was arrested in a supermarket near his home for filming under the skirts of customers, the so-called “upskirting”, for which he was later convicted. Only then did his dark web of crimes come to light.

For this first offense Pelicot received an eight-month suspended sentence. During the upskirting investigation, police confiscated his hard drive, laptop and phones and found hundreds of photos and videos of sexual abuse of his wife, to whom he had been married for 50 years.

This brought to light one of the most devastating sexual crimes in French judicial history.

The husband’s consent would have been sufficient

Gisèle Pelicot waived her anonymity and faced the defendants in a trial open to the media and the public.

While the ex-husband and 14 other defendants admitted their guilt, others defended the heinous acts in court by arguing that the husband’s consent was enough to perform sexual acts on his unconscious wife.

Pelicot himself denied sole responsibility and stressed in court: “I’m a rapist, just like everyone else in this room.” This statement illustrates the scope of the network orchestrated by Pelicot.

His defense lawyer, Beatrice Zavarro, rejected accusations that Pelicot acted as an “orchestra conductor” who manipulated other perpetrators.

However, co-defendants’ statements and the burden of proof speak a different language.

The French government announces new measures against sexual violence

The verdict is expected today, December 19, and the Prosecutor’s Office has made clear requests: prison terms of between four and twenty years for those involved, with Pelicot risking the maximum sentence.

The defendants, it should be remembered, are presumed innocent until the sentencing.

The case has sparked a national debate that goes far beyond the court case. Activists and women’s rights organizations are calling for legal changes, including the introduction of clear rules on consent for sexual acts. In response to the scandal, the French government has already announced new measures to combat violence against women.

“It’s time for the chauvinist and patriarchal society that trivializes rape to change,” said Gisèle Pelicot in a powerful closing statement. She called for a fundamental change in how we view rape and sexual violence.

An online platform plays a key role

For years, misogynistic content on platforms like Coco.fr has been a breeding ground for these crimes.

Founded in 2003 and marketed as a dating site, the site recorded 778,000 visits per month at its peak in 2023, according to Le Parisien. Lively discussions on often illegal topics took place in the completely uncontrolled chat rooms of the site.

Instead of facilitating discussions about illegal activities, the violence soon spilled over into the real world. A significant number of Coco users have reported being assaulted during meetings arranged through the site.

According to French media, at least two murders in France are linked to meetings organized via this platform. French NGOs had already identified Coco as a threat in 2013 and had asked the government and internet service providers to shut down the site, without success.

The French Interior Ministry requested a statement and referred CNN to the prosecutor handling the case.

The latter stated that the regulation of websites like Coco is a responsibility that the platforms themselves assume. French internet service provider Bouygues told CNN that it needs a court order or injunction from French authorities to shut down a website like Coco.

Coco was shut down in the summer, but NGOs and lawyers have warned that it is possible that other platforms will take its place due to a lack of security measures.

«Without this website, the case would never have reached such proportions»

The legal investigation into the Dominique Pelicot case sheds an alarming light on the role of unregulated online platforms such as Coco.fr, which have been used as tools for crime.

Gisèle Pelicot’s lawyers ask for clear consequences: “Without this website, the case would never have assumed such proportions,” explained Antoine Camus, who described the platform as a “murder weapon” that Dominique Pelicot deliberately used.

Although Coco.fr is not on trial, experts see the ongoing trial as a precedent that will allow similar sites to be shut down more quickly in the future.

Mathias Darmon of France’s cybercrime unit sees the investigations as an opportunity to fill gaps in the regulation of digital platforms.

Julien Zanetta, the Coco founder’s lawyer, declined to comment on Pelicot’s crimes.

Fear and helplessness in Mazan

While the legal investigation is ongoing, there is still a lot of uncertainty among the population – especially in Mazan, the small village where Pelicot committed his crimes. Annette Dumont, 62, describes the fear of many women: “It could very well happen again tomorrow in a different place.”

Residents feel helpless. «We can’t do anything. We will stay here in Mazan», says Nedeljka Macan resignedly.

The editorial team wrote this article with the help of AI.