Fears 21 more ‘Devils of Avignon’ rapists hiding in plain sight as cops search for mystery men seen in 20k vids & pics

MORE than 20 of the men involved in the horrific Avignon mass rape case are still at large.

Depraved Dominique Pelicot, who drugged and abused his ex-wife for years and offered her up to strangers he met online, was jailed today for 20 years.

Fifty co-defendants were convicted alongside Dominique, dubbed The Devil of Avignon, in a harrowing case that shocked the world.

French cops had listed a sickening 92 rapes committed by 72 different men during the trial.

Just 51 of them - including Dominique - were identified via some 20,000 videos and photos taken during the assaults and hauled into court on Thursday.

This means some 21 alleged rapists could be hiding in plain sight in the small sleepy town of Avignon, in southern France.

A total of 47 men were found guilty of rape, most against Gisèle, while two were convicted of attempted rape and two of sexual assault.

Together they were given over 400 years worth of jail time - with Dominique likely to die behind bars.

Most of the convicted have been described as perfectly average, ordinary men including a gardener, farm driver, tradesman and retired fireman.

They joined Dominique in the depraved sexual assaults, before slipping back into everyday life, and went unnoticed for many years.

One was even next-door neighbour to the Pelicots' and another a soldier who assaulted Gisèle on the day his daughter was born.

A forklift driver who knew he was HIV positive was also among her rapists as was a local man who continued even though his victim was snoring.

Dominique's lawyer Beatrice Zavarro called them "Mr Average" and said the “real debate” was “how these men, from all walks of life, landed up in Gisèle Pelicot’s bedroom.”

Speaking after her depraved ex was sentenced for almost a decade of secret abuse, Gisèle said on Thursday that she was left feeling "very emotional".

Addressing press outside the court Gisèle told how she was thinking of her children and grandchildren and said: "For them, I wanted to put this struggle forward."

The brave grandmother said she "never regretted" the decision to go public with the case, waiving her anonymity and becoming a feminist icon across the globe.

Protesters gathered outside the court to cheer her on - and chanted her name as she left later on.

One of the defendants was seen covering his face with a mask, baseball cap and hood as he slinked inside ahead of the trial.

Another - who was given a suspended sentence - was seen scrambling to escape crowds as he left in shame later that morning.

Gisèle sat next to her youngest son Florian in court - with lawyers dressed in black robes flanking the family.

The case revealed how Dominique would claim to be a “good husband” to Gisèle, whom he married in 1971, and a good father to his three children. 

Meanwhile behind closed doors, he drugged, raped, and recruited men to abuse his wife for almost a decade from 2011 to 2020.

He was first arrested in September 2020 for secretly filming up women’s skirts at a supermarket in Carpentras.

While in custody, he confessed to a hard drive hidden under a printer with a file called "Abuses" - full of footage depicting the rapes of his wife.

The incredibly brave Gisèle had to sit through more than three months of horrendous testimony throughout the course of the trial.

This included extracts from Pelicot's collection of homemade abuse videos and images being shown in court.

Hero Gisèle testified: "They regarded me like a rag doll, like a garbage bag."

Meanwhile sick Dominique confessed: "I am a rapist, like the others in this room," and said he may "die alone like a dog".

When the sicko spoke for the first time in court in the regional capital of Avignon, he said: “I am guilty of what I did – I say to my wife, my children, my grandchildren.

“I regret what I’ve done and I ask for forgiveness, even if it’s unforgivable.”

He added: “She [Gisèle] did not deserve this.”

Dominique has alleged he suffered abuse in his childhood and claimed that he was forced to watch the gang rape of a woman at the age of 14, while working as a building site apprentice.

The sicko added: “You are not born a pervert, you become one.”

PELICOT'S PERVERT PUPILS

He reportedly took part in the rapes, filmed them and encouraged the other men using degrading language, according to prosecutors.

No money exchanged hands.

The rapists, aged between 21 and 68, include a forklift driver, a fire brigade officer, a company boss, and a journalist.

Some were single, others married or divorced, and some family men.

While most only took part once, some did so up to six times, it has been claimed.

Some of the accused, like Dominique, acknowledged they were guilty of rape.

But many did not - even when faced with video evidence.

Some defendants argued that Dominique's consent covered the consent of Gisèle too.

Others tried to excuse their heinous acts by insisting they hadn't intended to rape anyone when they responded to Dominique's invites.

Dominique was blamed by some of the defendants, saying he had misled them into thinking they were taking part in a consensual kink.

While others suggested that perhaps Dominique's drugged them too - which he denied.