Former Surgeon Accused of Abusing 299 Young Patients, Some While Under Anesthetic, Set to Go on Trial: Reports

Joel Le Scouarnec's trial — reported to be the largest child abuse trial in French history — will begin later this month

PHILIPPE LOPEZ/AFP via Getty A photo outside the Palais de Justice amid Joel Le Scouarnec's 2020 trial

PHILIPPE LOPEZ/AFP via Getty

A photo outside the Palais de Justice amid Joel Le Scouarnec's 2020 trial
  • A former surgeon in France is set to go on trial after being accused of raping and assaulting hundreds of minors, many of whom were allegedly under anesthetic, it's been reported

  • Joel Le Scouarnec's case is thought to be the largest child abuse trial in French history

  • The 73-year-old suspect was sentenced to 15 years in jail in December 2020 for the rape and sexual abuse of four children, per the Associated Press

A former surgeon in France is set to go on trial later this month after being accused of raping and sexually assaulting hundreds of minors.

The case of Joel Le Scouarnec, 73, will go before judges in the commune of Vannes, in northwest France, in what's reported to be the largest child abuse trial in French history, per the BBC.

According to French outlet Le Monde, the suspect has been accused of assaulting 299 children between 1989 and 2014. The majority of the alleged victims are former patients of Le Scouarnec, many of whom were allegedly assaulted while under anesthesia, with most cases occurring in Brittany, per the BBC.

GEORGES GOBET/AFP via Getty Files are displayed in the courtroom during Joel Le Scouarnec's 2020 trial

GEORGES GOBET/AFP via Getty

Files are displayed in the courtroom during Joel Le Scouarnec's 2020 trial

In December 2020, France 24 reported that Le Scouarnec had been sentenced to 15 years in prison after being charged in 2017 following a testimony from his neighbor's 6-year-old daughter, who was one of his victims, citing the Agence France-Presse (AFP).

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The investigation revealed he'd raped two of his nieces between 1989 and 1999, as well as a then 4-year-old hospital patient in 1993, per the news agency.

It was reported at the time that police had uncovered more than 300,000 "indecent images of minors, including pictures of his two nieces," per France 24. The suspect admitted raping his nieces during the trial, who were ages 35 and 30 at the time of the 2020 hearing.

In addition to child abuse images, police also found child-sized sex dolls and diaries containing details of the alleged abuse over the course of 25 years, according to the BBC. Le Scouarnec claimed the diaries contained "fantasies," not real life accounts. He also allegedly wrote "I am a pedophile" multiple times, per the outlet.

While reporting details of Le Scouarnec's prison sentence in December 2020, the Associated Press stated the suspect had made comments on the alleged sexual acts inflicted next to each child's name, citing investigators.

The BBC reported the suspect, who is facing over 100 rape charges and more than 150 sexual assault charges, has admitted to some of the claims against him, but not all of them.

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Lawyer Francesca Satta, who is representing several of the alleged victims, told the BBC that she's working with clients including the families of two men who did remember the alleged abuse. They both died by suicide prior to the trial.

Margaux Castex — who is also representing one of the alleged victims — told the outlet her client is "traumatized that he ever gave his trust to a medical professional, and that's been hard to shake."

"He wishes he had never been told what happened," the lawyer added, per the publication.

"A huge degree of dysfunction allowed Le Scouarnec to commit his deeds," lawyer Frederic Benoist — who represents the child protection advocacy group La Voix de L'Enfant (The Child's Voice) — told the BBC.

The AP previously reported that the retired surgeon's alleged victims were an average age of 11 and included almost as many females as males.

PHILIPPE LOPEZ/AFP via Getty A prison van transporting former surgeon Joel Le Scouarnec during his 2020 trial

PHILIPPE LOPEZ/AFP via Getty

A prison van transporting former surgeon Joel Le Scouarnec during his 2020 trial

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The suspect was previously sentenced to a four-month suspended prison sentence in 2005 "for possession and importation of child pornographic images," per the news agency. The BBC reported that the suspended sentencing came after the FBI alerted French authorities that Le Scouarnec had been accessing child abuse websites.

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The trial is set to begin on Feb. 24 and is expected to last until June, per the BBC.

The Agence Régionale de Santé (ARS), lawyers Margaux Castex and Francesca Satta, and La Voix de L'Enfant didn't immediately respond when contacted by PEOPLE for comment.

If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, please contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) or go to rainn.org.

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