On the normal men – Britta Sandberg in Der Spiegel:

‘The defendants in the courtroom are today between the ages of 26 and 74. Some wear their hair short, others have ponytails or have already gone bald, a number of them have beards and many a small belly. There are a lot of tattoos. Most of them lived within a maximum radius of 50 kilometers. They were gardeners, firemen, soldiers, journalists, unemployed or had parttime jobs. Almost all of them are white Frenchmen, with a couple from the Maghreb and three Black men. Most of the men look completely normal, harmless.’

(…)

‘The evidence is unparalleled. Every single crime was documented by the husband. There is zero doubt about what the defendants did. The only question that remains to be answered is why they did what they did.’

(…)

‘Three days after the trial begins, Gisèle Pelicot testifies against her husband for the first time. Against the man with whom she spent almost 50 years of her life, the man she fell in love with at age 20, the man with whom she has three children and seven grandchildren. The man she had been happy with. Until November 2, 2020 – the day it all came to light.
Two months before that, Dominique Pelicot had been caught in a supermarket in the town of Carpentras trying to film under the skirts of three women with his mobile phone. The security guard at the supermarket apprehended him and alerted the police. The officers confiscated his mobile phone along with, during a search of his home, a computer, a hard drive and a camera.’

(…)

‘He then uttered the sentence that has since been quoted around the world and which began appearing at bus stops in Avignon a short time later: "Il faut que la honte change de camp.” Shame must change sides.’

(…)

‘Lawyer Babonneau: "You said earlier that you thought the whole thing was perhaps a game. What do you mean by that?” Defendant Andy R.: "I thought that maybe she didn’t want to see the man she was doing it with.” Lawyer Babonneau: "But she was snoring heavily.” Defendant Andy R.: "I have no memories of her snoring. I only heard that later on the video. But because her husband gave me permission, it meant that she was in agreement.”’

Read the article here.

Of course, the perpetrators looked normal.

It was just an opportunity. Not exactly a business opportunity, but still an opportunity.

It seems that the crime started late, the perversion came late to life. Or are there things we don't know yet?

When did Mr. P thought: I have fantasies that should not remain fantasies.

And what kind of fantasies should remain fantasies and what not? (There is always the world of role-playing as the best way out of the fantasy.)

Anyhow, a new chapter in the story of ordinary men and their not so ordinary deeds.

The game that turned out to be a crime, and the crime that was very much like a game for the perpetrators, until they became defendants.