A shocking case has opened in Manchester, where nine men are facing justice on charges of rape and sexual abuse of a woman who, according to the prosecution, was kept unconscious by her husband for more than 20 years. The case has highlighted not only suspicions of prolonged and organized abuse, but also the role of online contacts in the story.
What prosecutors allege
According to the prosecution, the defendants had come into contact with the victim’s husband through online groups or a website used by couples who practiced partner swapping. The allegation is that they approached him after he had shared photographs and videos online of the sexual abuse of his wife.
Prosecutors told the court that the husband, a man in his 60s from Stockport in northern England, initially exploited occasions when the woman had consumed a lot of alcohol and fell into a deep sleep. Later, they said, he moved on to using narcotic substances to keep her unconscious during the abuse.
Allegations of inviting men into the home and filming
According to the charges, starting in 2023 he began inviting other men to the home where they lived. The prosecution alleges that, while the woman remained unconscious in bed, he filmed himself and others raping her and carrying out other sexually abusive acts against her.
The victim’s husband is not being publicly identified in order to protect the woman’s privacy. He pleaded guilty in September to several criminal offences, including rape, sexual assault and administering substances with the intent of making her unable to react. He is currently being held in custody and is due to be sentenced on a later date.
Nine defendants deny the charges
The first hearing of the trial began on Monday in Manchester. The nine men on trial deny the charges of rape and sexual abuse.
Meanwhile, four other co-defendants had previously pleaded guilty to sexual offences. This makes the case even more serious, as the court is expected to examine in detail the evidence and the role of each defendant.
How the case was uncovered
The case came to light after investigative journalists, infiltrated in an online group, identified a user who claimed he had drugged his wife and invited strangers to sexually abuse her while she was unconscious.
After he was identified, police obtained a search warrant for the home and seized several items, including a Samsung Galaxy phone. According to the prosecution, more than one million photographs and videos documenting the abuse were found on the device.
What is known about the victim
The court heard that the couple had been in a relationship for 44 years and had two children. The woman said she had never met the defendants and had no knowledge of sexual contact with them.
She learned of the abuse only in October 2025, when police arrived at their home. According to prosecutors, that moment brought an end to the life she had known until then.
The case remains before the court and the allegations against the nine men are being contested by them in the courtroom.
Until a final verdict is reached, the claims presented in court remain part of the prosecution’s case.