Paedophilia case shocks town

ANGERS, a town in western France known for its medieval castle and Cointreau liqueur, now has a new, more sordid reputation — as the home of a paedophilia ring where parents allegedly raped, abused and pimped children and even babies.

Sixty-six people went on trial this week, but some residents still apparently refuse to accept that such crimes could be perpetrated in their midst.

Said deputy mayor Michelle Moreau: "I've heard people say to me, 'But you know, these children were used to it.' It's the horror of horror."

The trial's second day was devoted to presenting the more than 200 witnesses to the court. The trial is expected to last four months, but getting over the horror could take far longer in Angers. "It is an ordeal," said Moreau. Investigators say 45 children aged from six months to 14 years were abused by their parents or people close to them on a sprawling council estate from 1999 to 2002, in some cases in exchange for small amounts of money, food, cigarettes or alcohol.

The case, coming on the heels of another high-profile paedophilia trial in northern France last year, has prompted renewed soul-searching about how people could sink so low in a country that prides itself as an economic and political leader of Europe.

Some of the accused were abused themselves as children. Alcoholism, poverty and, defence lawyers claim, a failure of social workers to spot signs of abuse may have played a role.

More than half of the accused, aged 27 to 73, were unemployed, living off benefits in state-supported housing.

The case came to light in November 2000, when a 16-year-old girl alleged she had been raped by her mother's boyfriend.