A ‘sexual predator’ who viewed sexual relations as a ‘conjugal right’ will join six more suspects taking the stand at the Avignon Monster trial in France this week as the court hears damning assessments from psychologists today.
Jerome Vilela, a supermarket worker and volunteer firefighter, is among those accused of raping Gisele Pelicot while she was drugged and asleep, at the direction of her then-husband. Up to 50 men are accused and many of them deny the charges.
Vilela was described by his ex-partner as a “sex addict” and manipulator who had extramarital affairs with people he “wasn’t attracted to” so as not to form bonds, according to a judicial psychologist.
Psychologist Lucy Segnarbieux told how successful builder Thierry Parisis, one of the men suspected of abusing Pelicot at his Mazan home, fell into despair after the death of his son, Jimmy, in a car accident on New Year’s Day of 2016.
As evidence in her defense, Parisis’ ex-wife, Corinne, told the Vaucluse Criminal Court in Avignon how he tried to commit suicide in January 2021, on the anniversary of his son’s death, and was admitted to hospital twice. psychiatric.
When the judge asked her how often her ex-husband drank alcohol, she replied: “Some days he started drinking in the morning.” Then, turning to Madame Pelicot, he said, “Madam, I cannot understand why he did this to you.”
Gisele Pelicot arrives at the Avignon court on Monday to attend her husband’s trial
Pelicot has been present at most of the hearings because her husband is accused of raping her.
His story has inspired a wave of demonstrations across France in his support.
Dominique Pelicot admitted drugging his wife repeatedly over a decade and inviting strange men to rape her while he filmed them.
Dominique Pelicot, who allegedly drugged and raped his wife Gisele Pelicot, appears during his trial on September 17 (right)
About 50 men are accused of being accessories to the Pelicot rape over a period spanning nearly a decade. The case continues to shake France, with thousands of people taking to the streets in support of the victim.
Most deny being rapists and claim they were “deceived” by Pelicot, who told them that his wife had agreed to participate in a sex game in which she pretended to be asleep during sex.
Detectives discovered about 20,000 graphic images he had collected of his wife’s rape when he was arrested in 2020, after he was caught taking upskirt photographs of women at his local supermarket.
This week, seven men – including a hospital nurse, a bricklayer and a pastry chef – will testify at the trial.
Thierry Parisis is among the suspects accused of abusing Ms. Pelicot.
The psychologist Lucy Segnarbieux presented her conclusions today before the Vaucluse Criminal Court, in Avignon.
She said: “(Parisis’) daughter speaks of a ‘great childhood’ before the great misfortune when her brother died in a road accident aged just 18.
‘From then on, Thierry Parisis’s life collapsed.
‘He fell into alcoholism and depression. And he ended up leaving the family home because he couldn’t stand staying in this house where photos of his son were displayed everywhere.’
Jerome Vilela was described as a “sex addict” who believed that sexual relations were a “conjugal right” and had extramarital affairs with people he was “not attracted to” so as not to form bonds.
Elisa Scheidt testified today in court: ‘Vilela’s ex-partner painted the portrait of a two-faced man, a seducer, a liar and a manipulator of women. She described him as a sexual predator who demanded sexual relations with great frequency.
“Vilela is a sex addict who believes that intercourse is conjugal in a couple and demands sex every night.”
She added: “Vilela told me that he did not want to form relationships, so he had extramarital affairs with people he was not attracted to: women, men and obese transvestites.”
Vilela, who is in custody, listened attentively from the secure dock inside the courtroom.
The court was also told that hospital nurse Redouan El Farihi was desperate to have a child after he failed to conceive with his first and then second wife.
But her dream of having her first child was shattered when the adoption of a girl from her native Morocco was abruptly halted following her arrest for rape.
Jean Tirano, a pastry chef turned roofer, originally from the French possession of Réunion in the Indian Ocean, was judged to have fallen into a life of excessive alcohol and drug use while working in France.
Lead defendant Pelicot was not in court this morning because he needs an operation in hospital today for a serious liver and bladder condition that risked causing the entire trial to collapse two weeks ago.
Dominique Pélicot is accused of recruiting men online to assault his wife repeatedly over 10 years
Dominique Pelicot appears during his trial with 50 co-defendants at the courthouse in Avignon, France, on September 17, 2024.
The abuse took place in the southern French town of Mazan and was only discovered after the man was caught cheating on women in a local supermarket, prompting officers to search his home.
Judge Roger Arata told the court: ‘Monsieur Pelicot is ill. He will have to undergo a medical procedure today, this afternoon.
‘You are excused (from court) for the day. We hope to see you again tomorrow.”
His lawyer Beatriz Zavarro told AFP on Sunday that the exam “went well.”
Pelicot has admitted to the charges against him.
He is on trial along with 50 other men aged between 26 and 74, many of whom have denied the rape charge. Most risk up to 20 years in prison if convicted of aggravated rape.
Gisele Pelicot, who discovered the abuse only in 2020 after the police informed her, has requested that the trial be open to the public to raise awareness about the use of drugs to commit sexual abuse.
The case continues.
