A convicted French sex offender is seeking a publisher for the writings he produced during his incarceration, stirring renewed controversy. His pursuit comes as his former wife and daughter continue to publish their own accounts of the family’s traumatic past.
Frenchman Dominique Pelicot, convicted of organizing the rape of his then-wife, Gisèle Pelicot, by dozens of strangers, is seeking a publisher for writings he penned behind bars, his lawyer said Friday.
Dominique Pelicot, 73, was jailed for 20 years after admitting to drugging her with sedatives and inviting dozens of strangers to rape and abuse her over nearly a decade in a case that shocked the world.
He now wants to share his version of events, said his lawyer, Beatrice Zavarro.
“He has written novels, many poems, and his biography — his life story,” she said.
“He wants to be read… to tell his side of the story.”
But for now, “there is a lot of reluctance” among publishers, Zavarro added.
A court in southern France convicted Pelicot along with 50 other men in the mass sexual abuse case, handing co-defendants sentences ranging from three to 15 years behind bars.
Gisèle Pelicot, a 72-year-old who has become a feminist icon for her outspoken stance during her ex-husband’s trial, is to release her memoirs next year.
A Hymn to Life will be published in 20 languages in January 2026.
Their daughter, Caroline Darian, who has accused her father of sexual abuse, wrote a book in 2022 about the family’s ordeal, Et j’ai cessé de t’appeler papa (And I stopped calling you Dad).
With AFP
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