‘Drugged by civil servant who liked to see women wet themself’: ‘Victims’ describe how they were ‘given spiked drinks during interviews so they would lose all bladder control’

A former senior civil servant at France's culture ministry, Christian Nègre, is under investigation over allegations that he spiked the drinks of nearly 250 women during job interviews with a powerful diuretic, then manoeuvred them into situations with limited toilet access so he could watch them lose control of their bladders. The case, which centres on alleged incidents between 2009 and 2018, has drawn attention because Nègre is said to have used his position conducting recruitment interviews to target women applying for ministry jobs, allegedly humiliating them under the guise of legitimate professional meetings.

Among the alleged victims, Anaïs de Vos says she was drugged during a 2011 interview in Paris after accepting a coffee made by Nègre, before he suggested a walk outside during which she lost bladder control; Marie-Hélène Brice claims a similar approach was used against her during a 2016 interview in Strasbourg. Investigators reportedly found a spreadsheet on Nègre's computer labelled "Experiments", allegedly logging arrival times, dosing details, how long it took women to urinate, and details of their underwear. Police believe almost 200 women were targeted during job interviews, with dozens more alleged victims coming forward since, and the case has been described as an instance of "chemical submission", where drugs are used to exert control over another person.