Ten men charged in France over rape of drugged five-year-old

A gavel sits on a desk in Ottawa on Wednesday, Feb. 13, 2019. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

French prosecutors said Tuesday they had charged 10 men aged 29 to 50 in relation to an investigation into the alleged rape of a five-year-old boy while drugged.

The shocking case, in which the boy’s father has been charged, is a rare example of sexual abuse using drugs involving a young child.

An investigation was opened on February 15, 2025, following a report on a “chemsex” party the previous night in the northern city of Lille. Chemsex is the practice of turbocharging sexual encounters with powerful drugs.

The allegations were that a five-year-old child who was “put in contact with adult males by his own father” suffered “acts of sexual violence aggravated by the use of chemical substances”, it said.

It referred the matter to an investigating judge for acts committed in Lille between November 2024 and February 14, 2025, including for “rape and sexual assault involving the administration of a substance to the victim, without their knowledge, to impair their judgment or control their actions”.

Following an investigation, the 10 men were charged between February last year and last month.

One of the main suspects killed himself while being held in pretrial detention in June last year, the prosecutor’s office said, without providing further details on his identity.

The father has been indicted for “incestuous sexual assault” and “complicity in aggravated rapes and sexual assaults against his son”, the prosecutor’s office said.

He too was allegedly raped and assaulted during the same party, Lille prosecutor Samuel Finielz said.

The child is being looked after by his mother, from whom the father had separated before the alleged abuse.

The local Dernieres Nouvelles d’Alsace newspaper reported that at least one of the men -- a 30-year-old truck driver who was charged in January -- was not accused of being a participant but someone who received a video and did not report it to the authorities.

The case comes after a French man, Dominique Pelicot, was sentenced to 20 years in prison in December 2024 in a case that shocked the country, after admitting to repeatedly drugging his then-wife Gisele Pelicot and inviting dozens of men to rape her while she was unconscious between 2011 and 2020.

Gisele Pelicot became a feminist icon for opening her trial to the public, saying perpetrators of abuse -- not their victims -- should be ashamed.

The case has raised awareness in France about the use of drugs to commit abuse.

In another prominent case, a French court Tuesday found a former senator guilty of drugging a woman lawmaker with ecstasy with intent to sexually assault her, and handed him an 18-month sentence.

---

If you or someone you know is struggling with sexual assault or trauma, the following resources are available to support people in crisis:

• Call 911 if you are in immediate danger or fear for your safety.
• The Canadian Association of Sexual Assault Centres' website has a comprehensive list of sexual assault centres in Canada that offer information, advocacy and counselling. 
• The Ending Violence Association of Canada‘s website has links to helplines, support services and locations across Canada that offer sexual assault kits.
• Indian Residential School Survivors Society crisis lines: [phone] or [phone] (24/7)
• Toronto Rape Crisis Centre crisis line: [phone] (24/7)
• Canadian Human Trafficking Hotline: [phone] (24/7)
• Trans Lifeline: [phone]
• Suicide Crisis Helpline: call or text 988 (24/7)
• Sexual Misconduct Support and Resource Centre for current and former Canadian Armed Forces members: [phone]
• Read about your rights as a victim on the Canadian Resource Centre for Victims of Crime website.