Abbé Pierre: “touching which…”, an alleged victim breaks the silence with her face uncovered

In front of the cameras of Envoyé Spécial, a woman agreed to testify about the actions of the abbot Pierre.

© Bestimage In front of the cameras of Envoyé Spécial, a woman agreed to testify about the actions of Abbé Pierre.

IN BRIEF

• New people break the silence about the actions of Abbé Pierre
• Among them, a woman, aged 73, agrees to testify
• She confides in front of the cameras of Envoyé Spécial

This Thursday, January 16, 2025, viewers will find an episode of Envoyé Spécial on France 2, devoted to the accusations of rape and sexual assault targeting Abbé Pierre. Indeed, for many months, testimonies have been pouring in concerning the alleged actions of the priest. Ce Monday  January 13, an independent firm commissioned by Emmaüs published an edifying report on the abbot.

Nine new people accuse him of sexual violence. Some of them were reportedly minors at the time of the events. Among those people who break the silence, there is Danièle Moulin, 73 years old. In front of the cameras of Envoyé Spécial, she indicates having suffered sexual assaults from the abbot, in December 1972 during a humanitarian trip. 

A chilling testimony on the actions of the abbot Pierre

She mentions “touching on his part that could go quite far. On my chest, on intimate spaces”, she indicates facing the camera. The priest is said to have kissed her by force and to have masturbated in front of her: “I was 21, Abbé Pierre was 60. Every evening, he asked me to join him in his suite to review the day (…) He explained to me how lonely he was and how he suffered from emotional deprivation. That's when he made inappropriate gestures”, she reports.

During this sexual violence, she explains that she felt “a kind of disgust and a pity for the man”. She would meet him again in the 1990s. There again, she found herself faced with nudity imposed by the man.

A member of the priest's family assaulted ?

Atrocious testimonies. In the report of the independent institute, a man also recounts having been victim of a “sexual act with penetration” while he was still a minor. In this same document, the institute returns to the testimony of a member of the family of Abbé Pierre, renamed “HH”.

This person indicates having been confronted with  “sexual contact on her breasts” and two attempts at forced kisses. “This person asked me that neither her age nor the period appear, because these would have been elements that would have allowed her to be recognized”, explained in particular to Special Envoy Caroline De Haas, co-founder of the Egaé group, which carried out this study.