UK man pleads guilty to drugging and raping his wife for 20 years

Temilade Adelaja/Reuters

A British man has admitted to drugging and raping his wife without her knowledge for a period of more than two decades.

The man pleaded guilty to dozens of offenses in a court in Manchester, northern England, on Monday – including rape, attempted rape, sexual assault and administering a substance with intent.

The man is in his 60s and cannot be named to protect his wife’s anonymity.

He initially denied all the charges before pleading guilty this summer to five counts of rape, six counts of assault by penetration, three counts of sexual assault and one count of sharing intimate images of his wife without her consent. He has now pleaded guilty to a total of 60 offenses.

The man’s wife sat in the courtroom on Monday as he entered his plea.

Twelve other men, whose ages range between 28 and 74 and who come from across the United Kingdom, are also accused of sexual offenses against the same woman. Those men have denied all of the charges against them and will stand trial in Manchester.

Prosecutors are expected to open their case this week.

In a statement from Greater Manchester Police, Assistant Chief Constable Rick Jackson said Monday that the force’s focus “remains on supporting the victim of this horrific campaign of abuse through what is a very complex investigation,” adding that she continues to receive specialist support.

CNN’s Saskya Vandoorne contributed to this report.

Temilade Adelaja/路透社

一名英国男子承认在长达二十多年的时间里，在妻子不知情的情况下给她下药并强奸了她。

周一，这名男子在英格兰北部曼彻斯特的一家法庭上承认了数十项罪行，包括强奸、强奸未遂、性侵犯和故意投毒。

该男子已年过六旬，为保护其妻子的隐私，不能透露其姓名。

他最初否认所有指控，但在今年夏天承认了五项强奸罪、六项性侵罪、三项性侵犯罪和一项未经妻子同意分享其私密照片的罪名。目前，他已承认共计60项罪名。

周一，当这名男子认罪时，他的妻子坐在法庭里。

另有12名年龄介于28岁至74岁之间、来自英国各地的男子也被指控对同一名女子实施性侵犯。这些男子否认了所有指控，并将于曼彻斯特接受审判。

预计检方将于本周开始陈述案情。

大曼彻斯特警察局助理局长里克·杰克逊周一发表声明称，警方的重点“仍然是通过一项非常复杂的调查来支持这起可怕的虐待活动的受害者”，并补充说，她将继续获得专家支持。

CNN的Saskya Vandoorne对本报道亦有贡献。