Hundreds join global support group for survivors of drug-facilitated rape

Hundreds of people have joined an international support group for victims of drug-facilitated rape. This crime happens when someone is drugged and sexually assaulted while they are unconscious.

Zoe Watts and Amanda Stanhope, who both experienced this terrible crime by their partners, started the group. They are now calling for stronger laws to stop people from sharing images and videos of sexual assaults and rape online.

Recently, the National Crime Agency announced they had discovered a large, international group involved in organised drug-facilitated sexual assault. They identified over 270 people connected to an online forum they started investigating last year. However, they believe many more online groups are not yet known to law enforcement.

Watts created the support network, and it has quickly grown. People from 22 different countries have reached out for help. Watts mentioned that many survivors express relief after finding the group, saying they finally understand why they have been feeling unwell for years. She expects more women to come forward as awareness increases.

The campaign, called End Eye Check, highlights a specific detail of this crime. Perpetrators sometimes pull back a victim’s eyelids to show they are unconscious before assaulting them. These assaults are often filmed and can be specifically searched for online.

Watts’ own experience was devastating. Her husband admitted to secretly giving her sleeping pills in her tea for over ten years and raping her while she was unconscious. He is now serving an 11-year prison sentence.

Stanhope also suffered repeated assaults by her partner while she was under the effects of prescription medication. She would sometimes wake up confused, wearing different clothes, and with bruises. Her partner faced charges for rape and sexual assault but died before his court case.

Stanhope wants to fight the online content that helps this crime spread. She feels that current support systems failed her and many other women. She explained that sometimes police inform women they are victims only after finding a video of the assault. She emphasized the extreme trauma involved and the lack of dedicated support.

Both women were inspired to speak out after learning about Gisèle Pelicot. She was a French woman who was drugged and raped by her husband and many others for nearly a decade. She chose to have her trial in public to raise awareness about this crime.

Watts and Stanhope believe that while Pelicot’s case brought attention to the issue, more education is needed. They want medical professionals to be trained to recognise the signs of drug-facilitated rape. They also want young people to learn about the risks involved.