French surgeon confesses sexual abuse of 299 young patients during process: “a turning point”

“I asked him if he acknowledged that the 299 charges were indeed criminal offenses and he said” yes “,” Lawyer Maxime Tessier said after the hearing. The debt is laid down in an official report, it still sounds. According to the lawyer, the statement is “a turning point” in the process. “I have a duty to tell the truth,” Joël Le Scouarnec would have said.

“Recognition is a crucial step to help victims move forward. It is good that it happens in this phase of the process,” responds Frédérique Giffard, who represents around fifteen civil parties.

The former surgeon must stand trial for the sexual abuse of 299 patients. The trial against Le Scouarnec is one of the greatest pedophilia processes ever in France. Most of the 299 victims were minors at the time of the facts, 256 were younger than 15. The majority were under anesthesia when the abuse took place.

The now 74-year-old Le Scouarnec had previously admitted his involvement in various facts. But so far, he had only made confessions.