A 79-year-old Frenchman once known locally as “Monsieur Jacques” in Moroccan communities, has been charged with the rape and sexual assault of at least 89 teenage boys.
Jacques Leveugle is accused of committing the offences over more than five decades in what French prosecutors describe as a case of exceptional scale and seriality.
The Grenoble prosecutor, Étienne Manteaux, revealed details on February 10, launching an international appeal for witnesses after Leveugle’s nephew discovered USB drives containing detailed memoirs of his alleged crimes.
Leveugle, detained since February 2024 in southeast France, has reportedly admitted to the acts and referred to himself as a “gentleman boy-lover” or “pédéraste”.
The alleged offences, dating from 1967 to 2022, targeted boys aged 13 to 17 and occurred in at least nine countries across four continents: France (including New Caledonia), Germany, Switzerland, Morocco, Algeria, Niger, the Philippines, India, Colombia and others.
Leveugle, who lacked formal teaching qualifications, exploited positions as an informal educator, tutor, holiday camp instructor and street sweeper allegedly to gain access to vulnerable minors.
Recent on-the-ground inquiries in the Atlas Mountains region where Leveugle lived intermittently have uncovered accounts from former neighbours and pupils who knew him as a quiet, unassuming figure.
In Morocco’s Khenifra region, where he lived for extended periods and was remembered as a quiet figure who swept streets and taught informally, former pupils and locals expressed shock at revelations that the man they called “Monsieur Jacques” stands accused of systematic abuse.
Similar dismay has emerged in Algeria and other locations where he operated.
Investigators believe the USB files, described as extensive memoirs, has enabled the identification of 89 victims so far.
The total may rise as international co-operation continues. Leveugle lived primarily in Morocco in recent years, returning occasionally to France to visit family near Vizille in the Isère department.
The case has also drawn scrutiny for its transnational dimension, with prosecutors noting Leveugle’s pattern of moving between countries possibly to evade detection.
French authorities have classified the allegations as a textbook example of serial offending, prompting calls for greater cross-border vigilance on child protection.
Leveugle remains in custody. The Grenoble prosecutor’s office continues to seek contact from potential additional victims or witnesses in any of the implicated countries.
🔴⚡️ Soupçonné de viols et agressions sexuelles sur 89 mineurs, qui est vraiment Jacques Leveugle, né en 1946 à Annecy et se présentant comme éducateur ou enseignant ? #JT20h pic.twitter.com/zygJEBetor
— Le20h-France Télévisions (@le20hfrancetele) February 10, 2026
