French authorities have taken the extraordinary step of publicly identifying 79-year-old Jacques Leveugle, currently in custody in southeastern France, to facilitate victim identification in a sprawling sexual abuse case spanning six decades and multiple continents. The Grenoble prosecutor’s office revealed that Leveugle faces charges involving 89 teenage victims, with offenses allegedly occurring between 1967 and 2022 across numerous countries including France, Germany, Switzerland, Morocco, Niger, Algeria, the Philippines, India, Colombia, and New Caledonia.
The breakthrough in this decades-long investigation came in October 2023 when Leveugle’s nephew, harboring suspicions about his uncle, discovered a USB drive containing what prosecutor Etienne Manteaux described as “15 volumes of exceptionally dense material” – including photographs and detailed written accounts of sexual encounters with minors aged 13 to 17. This evidence led to Leveugle’s arrest in 2024 while visiting family in the Isère region near Grenoble.
Manteaux explained the unusual decision to publicly name the suspect: “Of the 89 assaults documented, we have only identified approximately 40 victims. The appeal for additional victims to come forward is crucial as many entries in his journal contain only first names, creating significant identification challenges.”
The investigation reveals Leveugle operated as an informal educator and holiday camp assistant throughout his adult life, using his position to gain access to vulnerable teenagers. “Victims describe how he devoted considerable time to helping them learn foreign languages and develop cultural awareness,” Manteaux noted, describing the suspect as possessing “a complex personality.”
In a disturbing development, Leveugle has allegedly confessed to two historic murders during interrogation. He claims to have suffocated his cancer-stricken mother in 1974 and his 92-year-old aunt in 1992, explaining that he hoped someone would show him similar “mercy” if he faced comparable end-of-life circumstances. A separate judicial investigation has been initiated regarding these admissions.
Legal complications arise from France’s statute of limitations, which prevents prosecution for alleged assaults occurring before 1993. However, authorities emphasize the importance of establishing a complete historical record of Leveugle’s activities. This case follows patterns seen in other high-profile French sexual assault investigations where meticulous record-keeping by offenders ultimately contributed to their convictions, similar to the Pélicot and Le Scouarnec cases that resulted in 20-year prison sentences.