A French court has found 72-year-old Dominique Pelicot guilty of drugging his wife of 50 years and facilitating her rape by strangers. Judge Roger Arata of the Avignon court handed down the maximum sentence of 20 years imprisonment.

Pelicot confessed to years of drugging his wife, Gisèle, to enable himself and others he recruited online to sexually assault her while he filmed the attacks.

Gisèle Pelicot, now a 72-year-old grandmother, endured this decade-long ordeal within what she believed to be a loving marriage. Her bravery throughout the arduous trial has made her a national heroine in France.

The three-month trial, a landmark case in France, sparked widespread outrage and fueled campaigns against sexual violence, leading to calls for stricter measures to combat rape culture.

Along with Pelicot, 49 other men faced trial for aggravated rape and attempted rape, facing potential sentences of up to 20 years. Prosecutors sought the maximum sentence for Pelicot and prison terms ranging from 10 to 18 years for the others. An additional defendant was tried for aggravated sexual assault and faced a four-year sentence request.

The 51 men were all implicated in Pelicot’s abusive scheme, which unfolded in the couple’s retirement home in Mazan and other locations.

Pelicot testified that he concealed tranquilizers in his wife’s food and drink, rendering her unconscious for hours while the assaults occurred.

Gisèle Pelicot’s decision to forgo anonymity, coupled with her determination to ensure open court proceedings and the presentation of shocking evidence, including video footage, has ignited crucial conversations nationally and within communities about women’s safety and men’s roles in protecting them.

Pelicot first came under police scrutiny in September 2020 after a supermarket security guard observed him secretly filming women’s skirts. A subsequent police search uncovered over 20,000 photos and videos documenting years of abuse against his wife, organized in folders titled “abuse,” “her rapists,” “night alone,” and others.