Women among the nearly 250 who claim a top French civil servant spiked them and forced them to wet themselves have slammed the delays in their wait for justice.
Christian Nègre, who was a senior civil servant at France's culture ministry, is being investigated over claims he drugged coffees and teas with a strong illegal diuretic before handing them to female candidates at job interviews. He would then allegedly take these women on long walks away from toilets and forced them to urinate on themselves.
Now, two of his alleged victims have complained about delays in this case, with one saying the wait felt like "secondary victimisation".
Investigation and allegations
A probe into Nègre was launched following several charges, including sexual assault and drugging, in 2019. Nègre was accused of spiking these women's drinks over a nine year period, knowing it would make them need to use the toilet.
Some women claimed they felt faint or became dizzy on these "walking interviews" as some claimed they were forced to wet themselves in public spaces. Investigators said they found a spreadsheet on the former civil servant's computer titled "P Experiments", where he supposedly detailed the doses, dates and reactions women had.
Victims speak out
Anaïs de Vos, speaking to the BBC, claimed Nègre offered her a cup of coffee while he interviewed her for a job at France's Ministry of Culture in Paris in 2011. The woman, who was 27 at the time, said she took the coffee to be polite before going on a walk on the streets of the city.
The woman said she urgently needed to urinate and claimed Nègre directed her towards the door of a storage cupboard under a bridge along the River Seine. Anaïs, who is now 42 years old, said she first spoke to the police about the case in 2019 but said she did not hear back until 2023, despite sending multiple emails. She said: "Everything is unsettling and I am angry at how we are treated."
The woman added: "For four years, I was alone with the knowledge that I was a victim. I didn't know what to do. I am very angry with the justice system."
Secondary victimisation
Marie-Hélène Brice, who was also named in Nègre's notes, said she had met him during a job interview at the Ministry of Culture in Strasbourg in 2016. She claimed the man suggested taking a walk outside as she looked stressed but Marie-Hélène said she felt the uncontrollable need to go to the toilet while walking along the canal.
The woman alleged that Nègre said he knew where a toilet was along the canal but the woman said there was no lavatory when they got to his destination, forcing her to urinate in public. She told the BBC: "I was terribly embarrassed. He didn't take his eyes off me." Marie-Hélène added that she has been left with urinary problems after the alleged drugging.
Marie-Hélène called the wait for justice "secondary victimisation", adding: "As a victim, I have to prove the impact, go to a psychiatrist, write specific notes." On the wait for justice, she said: "We do not necessarily feel [we are] completely taken seriously."
