A husband who admitted drugging and raping his wife for more than 20 years allegedly invited other men to sexually abuse her while she lay unconscious on their marital bed, a court has heard. Nine men are standing trial at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court over alleged sexual offences involving the woman, who remained unaware of the abuse until police informed her in October 2025.
The prosecution says the alleged involvement of the nine defendants dates back to 2015, while the husband began inviting men to the couple's home from at least 2023. In a chilling detail, one defendant allegedly referenced the notorious Gisèle Pelicot case in France when warning the husband to delete evidence and cut contact.
Husband's 20-Year Abuse
Prosecutor Louise Oakley KC told jurors that the woman had been living what was described as a 'double life' without knowing what was happening behind closed doors. Her husband has admitted 62 offences, including rape and administering substances with intent. His offending spanned more than two decades, from 2004 to 2025.
He initially exploited occasions when his wife had consumed enough alcohol to put her into a deep sleep before increasingly giving her a cocktail of stupefying drugs without her knowledge. As his behaviour escalated, he allegedly moved from recording the abuse to inviting other men to their home. From at least 2023, he allegedly arranged for men to visit while his wife lay unconscious in their bedroom, filming himself and others carrying out sexual acts against her.
Prosecutors say the husband shared images and videos of the alleged abuse with men he had met online, including some of the defendants. When police seized his phone, they found what Oakley described as a 'confession booth' containing decades' worth of material. The prosecutor told the court that it included more than a million photographs and videos documenting the abuse of his wife by him and others.
Oakley said the men discussed the husband's actions, his plans and ways to incapacitate his wife without her knowledge. She told jurors that the defendants derived sexual gratification from knowing the woman was 'unaware' or 'out of it'. The prosecution alleges they knew she was not consenting and did not reasonably believe she was agreeing to the sexual activity.
Stewart's Pelicot Warning
One of the most striking details emerged when jurors heard about a message allegedly sent by defendant Robert Stewart after visiting the property in September 2025. The court heard that Stewart sent the husband a warning within hours of the visit, urging him to delete images and referring to the case involving Gisèle Pelicot. Her former husband, Dominique Pelicot, was convicted in France in 2024 of drugging her and inviting other men to rape her while she was unconscious.
The message allegedly read: 'Mate have had a bad feeling about it all day. Delete all images from your phone etc as its too risky. Remember what happened to the guy in France'.
Stewart allegedly continued by telling the husband to delete him from his phone and life, warning that if his wife discovered what had happened, it could end his marriage and ruin his life. The reference to the 'guy in France' was understood by the court to concern Dominique Pelicot, whose crimes became the subject of international attention after the abuse was uncovered.
Oakley told jurors that the husband had filmed and photographed the alleged abuse before sharing the material online with other men interested in the fact that the woman was unconscious. She said: 'And, I suggest, that was the whole point and part of their barbaric fantasies'.
The nine defendants standing trial are Robert Stewart, David Graves, Philip Wild, Daniel Rayner, Mohammed Sabir, Jordan Wallace, Alan Keelan, Richard Townsend and Jonathan Kirk. Their individual charges vary and include rape, attempted rape, sexual assault, assault by penetration, and conspiracy to rape, assault by penetration or administer a substance with intent.
Seven are described by the prosecution as contact defendants who allegedly visited the property, while Graves and Rayner are accused of non-contact involvement through online communications. All nine defendants deny the charges, and the trial continues.
