France seeks witnesses against ex-teacher accused of abusing minors, including Filipinos

International

FRENCH prosecutors are appealing for more witnesses in a mass abuse case involving a 79-year-old former teacher accused of sexually assaulting 89 minors across multiple countries, including the Philippines.

Jacques Leveugle, born in 1946 in Annecy, an Alpine town near Grenoble, has been in custody since his 2024 charges.

A report by Agence France-Presse stated that French authorities unusually named him publicly to encourage potential victims to come forward, Prosecutor Etienne Manteaux said.

Leveugle is accused of abusing male teenagers aged 13 to 17 in countries including Germany, India, Colombia, Switzerland, Morocco, Niger, Algeria, the Philippines, and the French territory of New Caledonia, where he worked as a freelance teacher and speleology instructor.

Authorities described Leveugle as "cultured and charismatic," using his position to "intellectually seduce" minors and likening himself to ancient Greek mentors of adolescent boys.

Grenoble police commander Serge Procedes said there was no physical violence in the assaults, describing them as a form of moral coercion.

Investigators have so far interviewed around 150 people, but only two have filed civil cases. The ongoing investigation aims to identify victims known only by nicknames or first names.

Procedes emphasized that time is a factor, given Leveugle’s age and the approaching statute of limitations, noting that the judicial investigation must conclude in 2026.

Leveugle had no prior criminal record. Authorities were first alerted in 2022 when his nephew handed over USB drives containing extensive writings, which prosecutors reviewed for evidence.

In addition to the sexual abuse charges, Leveugle confessed to killing his terminally ill mother in the 1970s and his 92-year-old aunt in the 1990s by suffocation. He reportedly justified the killings as acts he would want done for himself in similar circumstances.(Adriane Josef E. Cabase, USJ-R Comm Intern)