French prosecutors have charged 10 men in connection with the alleged rape of a five-year-old boy who authorities say was drugged during a “chemsex” gathering in Lille, a case that has jolted France with its severity and rarity.
The Lille prosecutor’s office said an investigation opened on Feb. 15, 2025, followed a report of a drug-fueled party the previous night in the northern city. The case has been referred to an investigating judge for alleged acts committed between November 2024 and Feb. 14, 2025, including “rape and sexual assault involving the administration of a substance to the victim, without their knowledge, to impair their judgment or control their actions.” Chemsex refers to sexual encounters involving powerful drugs.
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Prosecutors said the 10 men were charged between February 2025 and January 2026. One of the main suspects died by suicide in pretrial detention in June 2025, the prosecutor’s office said, without providing further identifying details.
The child’s father has been indicted on counts of “incestuous sexual assault” and “complicity in aggravated rapes and sexual assaults against his son,” the prosecutor’s office said. He also was allegedly raped and assaulted during the same party, according to Lille prosecutor Samuel Finielz. The child is now in the care of his mother; the parents had separated prior to the alleged abuse.
The case is an uncommon instance in France of alleged drug-facilitated sexual abuse involving a young child and comes amid heightened national attention to crimes committed using sedatives and party drugs. Under French law, those charged remain presumed innocent pending trial.
Local media reported that not all of those charged are suspected of participating in the alleged assaults. Dernières Nouvelles d’Alsace said at least one of the men — a 30-year-old truck driver charged in January — is accused of receiving a video of the abuse and failing to alert authorities.
The Lille investigation follows a series of high-profile cases that have intensified scrutiny of drugging in sexual violence. In December 2024, a French court sentenced Dominique Pelicot to 20 years in prison after he admitted to repeatedly drugging his then-wife, Gisele Pelicot, and inviting dozens of men to rape her while she was unconscious between 2011 and 2020. She opened the proceedings to the public, arguing that perpetrators — not victims — should bear the shame, and has since become a prominent voice on the issue.
In another prominent case, a former French senator was convicted of drugging a woman politician with ecstasy with intent to sexually assault her and received an 18-month sentence, further fueling debates over drug-facilitated crimes and the adequacy of legal penalties.
Authorities have released no further details on the alleged substances involved in the Lille chemsex case or any potential links between the suspects. Prosecutors did not specify when the investigating judge might conclude the inquiry or set a trial date.
The prosecutor’s office reiterated that the investigation remains active and that the child’s welfare is being coordinated with social services. No additional information about the victim’s identity has been disclosed.
By Abdiwahab Ahmed
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
