WARNING: This article may affect those who have experienced sexual violence or know someone affected by it.
In September, as the mass rape trial that has shocked people around the world was just beginning,Gisèle Pelicot said she wanted people to know her name.
And now that all 51 men charged in connection with the drugging, rape and sexual assault of Gisèlehave been found guilty by a French court, we can know theirs.
One of those men was Pelicot’s now ex-husband, Dominique Pelicot, who was sentenced to the maximum of 20 years for drugging and raping his wife over nearly a decade and inviting other men to their home to participate.
The 50 other men were oftendubbed in French media as “Monsieur Tout-le-monde,” or “Mr. Every Man.”
“They just seem like your next-door neighbour. They could be your next-door neighbour. And in the end, that’s what really shocked a lot of French people is that they were their next-door neighbours,” New York Times journalist Catherine Portersaid in The Daily podcast earlier this week.
Ranging in age from 27 to 74, most of them had standard jobs like truck driver, carpenter, prison guard, nurse, I.T. expert, a local journalist, a gardener, DJ and former firefighter.
“I believe it’s raised awareness among many people who may have previously thought such acts of sexual cruelty were rare and committed only by so-called ‘monsters,'” Ummni Khan, an associate professor in the department of law and legal studies at Carleton University in Ottawa, told CBC News.
Most lived within a 50-kilometre radius of the Pelicots’picturesque village of Mazan, which is nestled in vineyards below Mont Ventoux in southeastern France.
A man hiding his face is surrounded by French police, journalists and protesters as he leaves after the verdict in the trial for Dominique Pelicot, at the courthouse in Avignon, France, on Thursday. (Alexandre Dimou/Reuters)
Multiple men had wives, children or both. Some were grandfathers. Despite video evidence, most denied the charges against them.
The court found 46 guilty of rape, two guilty of attempted rape and two guilty of sexual assault. Under French law, their full identities could not previously be reported,according to BBC.
These are the names CBC News can confirm. We will continue to add to this list.
Dominique Pelicot: Guilty of aggravated rape on his ex-wife, Gisèle. He is 72, and married Gisèle in 1973. The couple, who are now divorced, had three children and Gisele said she had thought they had a happy marriage. Professionally, Pelicot appeared to have struggled, working as an electrician and then in real estate but having to ask family members for loans. Addressing the court in September, he said he had had a difficult upbringing and had himself been a victim of rape. He said he had wanted his wife to participate in partner swaps and her refusal, together with trauma from his youth, had contributed to triggering his abusive behaviour. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison on Thursday.
Jean-Pierre Marechal: Guilty of attempted rape and aggravated rape of his own wife, as well as drugging her. He was the only defendant not accused of raping or abusing Gisèle Pelicot. Instead, encouraged by Dominique Pelicot, he drugged his own wife and let Pelicot come to his home on several occasions to rape her. He worked at a garden centre and had no criminal record prior to his arrest. Some of his six children testified on his behalf. Sentenced to 12 years. He is 63.
Charly Arbo: Guilty of aggravated rape. He is 30 years old. He went to the Pelicots’ house six times between 2018 and 2020. On the first occasion, he was 22 and Gisèle was 64. According toLe Monde, Dominique Pelicot repeatedly urged Arbo to rape his mother, to no avail. Sentenced to 13 years.
Cyrille Delville: Guilty of aggravated rape,according to BBC. Sentenced to eight years. He is a father of two. According to the Guardian, Delville is 54 and trained as a butcher. The news outlet also says he admitted to the rape in court, apologized, and that while he was in prison on remand said he had understood that “women do not belong to men.”
Jerome Vilela: Guilty of aggravated rape. Age 46. He visited the Pelicots’ home six times in little more than three months in 2020. He told investigators he had had a difficult childhood, with unloving parents and bullying at school. He was once a volunteer fireman but struggled with a sex addiction and had a history of infidelity and breakups. The father of three children, he admitted the rape charges and said he knew Gisèle had been drugged. He was sentenced to 13 years in jail.
Dominique Davies: Guilty of aggravated rape. Davies, 45, a truck driver and ex-soldier, raped Gisèle during six visits to the Pelicots’ home, beginning in 2015. Davies, who grew up in a foster home, told police he started visiting the now-closed coco.fr website, where he linked up with Dominique Pelicot because of his wife’s lack of sexual desire. The fact Gisèle was “completely submissive and reduced to a sexual object contributed to his excitement,” according to the police report. He said he left his clothes outside the patio door of the Pelicots’ house so that he could flee quickly if Gisèle woke up. In court, he acknowledged “the material facts” as evidenced by the video footage but said he had “had no intention of committing a criminal act.” He was sentenced to 13 years in prison.
Romain Vandevelde: Guilty of aggravated rape, according to the BBC. Age 63. Vandevelde had a painful childhood, according to court documents. The fourth of nine children, his home was extremely violent and he was raped as a child. He got married, joined the army and later divorced. He went to the Pelicots’ home six times in 2019 and 2020, telling the court he had been lonely. He acknowledged knowing he was HIV positive when he raped Gisèle without wearing a condom. He said he was being treated for the disease and could not transmit the virus. He denied the rape charges and was sentenced to 15 years in prison.
Joseph Cocco: Guilty of aggravated sexual assault. Cocco, 69, was sentenced to three years in jail, two of them suspended, The Guardian reports. According to the New York Times, he’s a swinger and showed up to the Pelicot home for what he thought was a threesome. After “stroking her backside,” he told the court he left after that when he heard Gisèle snoring.
Christian Lescole: Guilty of aggravated rape and sentenced to nine years,according to BBC. The publication adds he’s a volunteer fireman and has two daughters. He’s 57, saysthe Guardian.
Lionel Rodriguez: Guilty of attempted rape, with aggravating factors and sentenced to eight years, according tothe Independent. Rodriguez, 44, worked in the same supermarket where Dominique Pelicot was caught filming up women’s skirts, which led to the police investigation against him.
For anyone who has been sexually assaulted, there is support available through crisis lines and local support services via the Ending Violence Association of Canada database.
For anyone affected by family or intimate partner violence, there is support available through crisis lines and local support services.
If you’re in immediate danger or fear for your safety or that of others around you, please call 911.
