A French appeals court on Thursday handed Husamettin Dogan a 10-year prison term for raping Gisèle Pelicot, increasing his original nine-year sentence.
Dogan, 44, was the only defendant to maintain his appeal following the initial trial of 51 men in 2024, including Dominique Pelicot, the victim’s husband, in a case of mass sexual abuse.
For ten years, Gisèle Pelicot was drugged by her husband and handed over to strangers who raped her in the marital home while her husband filmed them. Police were able to establish 92 rapes committed by at least 73 men. Fifty-one of these men were identified and convicted at the nearly four-month trial that concluded in December 2024, with Dominique Pelicot, 72, receiving the maximum sentence of 20 years for “aggravated rape,” two-thirds of which is to be served in prison.
During Thursday’s appeal ruling, the presiding judge Christian Pasta said: “The court and jury sentence Husamettin Dogan to 10 years in prison,” along with “mandatory treatment for five years.” Dogan did not react to the verdict in court.
Gisèle Pelicot chose to waive her anonymity during the trial to raise awareness about sexual violence and was present for the appeal. She told the court that Dogan had raped her and must “take responsibility” for his actions. Public prosecutor Dominique Sie had requested a 12-year sentence, emphasizing that Dogan’s refusal to admit his crimes upheld a “sordid social system” that normalizes abuse.
After the ruling, Pelicot left the court silent but smiling, while the public applauded and shouted “bravo” and “thank you.”
