Sexual assault on sedated partners becoming an organised crime as “truly international” network exposed

Domestic abuse — The National Crime Agency (NCA) has revealed that they have been investigating a “truly international network” of organised sexual abuse and assault in which drugs are used to sedate unwitting victims “often taking place over decades”.

Helen Millichap, director of the National Centre for Violence Against Women and Girls and Public Protection, told the Guardian these crimes are:

rooted in domestic abuse, controlling and coercive behaviour and sexual offending.

Adding that, whilst they are not a ‘new’ offence:

the evolving profile reveals how the online and connected nature of the abuse is occurring, the dimensions are changing and therefore so must our response.

The NCA’s deputy director, Nigel Leary, appears to agree, saying that online platforms were “enabling” crimes to be committed and even support their occurrence.

In the UK, this has led to 14 separate investigations, eight men arrested and eight survivors identified and protected from further harm. But more needs to be done.

Warning: This post contains references to sexual abuse.

A coordinated national response is now tackling organised networks of sexual offenders and domestic abusers who drug victims before assaulting and filming them.

Read the full story ➡️ https://t.co/kxHULOhJQt pic.twitter.com/yAGKXxFj8f

— National Crime Agency (NCA) (@NCA_UK) July 2, 2026

Domestic abuse is getting worse, not better

Domestic abuse is a serious issue in the UK. Last year alone, the police recorded over 1.3m incidents of domestic abuse with approximately 3.8m people over the age of 16 experiencing its harms. Now, it seems the depths of depravity that these types of male offenders are prepared to sink to is getting even more sinister for women and girls across the UK.

These terrifying discoveries from the NCA follow an investigation into just one online forum which began last October, finding that these drug-facilitated sexual crimes are being perpetrated by men who:

utilise the existence of committed, trusting and often long-term relationships to perpetrate and facilitate offending.

Over 90% of the offenders identified are in “intelligence packages” sent abroad, which shows this issue is less about where you come from and more about your gender. Once again, we are being shown just how much harm men are willing to inflict on women and girls. Even worse, using drugs that leave victims with no awareness leading them to have little proof to hold their sexual abusers accountable under the law.

In fact, it seems it’s only in the sharing of footage ‘for kicks’ that criminals are being identified. As a result, it stands to reason that this could be happening at an even higher rate than the NCA is even aware of.

Women and girls live within a rape culture

Rape Crisis for England and Wales spoke in April about concerning coverage from CNN which detailed an online ‘rape academy’ which hosts videos of men from around the world choosing to drug their wives and partners in order to commit sexual violence against them — but also recording their crimes and sharing it as if it is a commodity.

Amelia Handy, head of policy and public affairs, said at the time:

this CNN investigation confirms yet again that women and girls live within a rape culture, where predatory men perpetrate extraordinary harm and support others in doing so. So-called sleep pornography is quite simply rape, obtaining consent from someone who is asleep is obviously impossible.

The platforms which are used to proliferate such extreme misogyny, and sexual violence must face considerable penalties and be shut down for doing so.

We also wrote last year about the huge rise in reported rapes over the past two decades — an increase of more than 500%. Some will argue that’s because more victims now feel able to come forward. That may well be part of the picture, but there are many who stay silent due to the justice system’s dismal conviction rates, which too often leave victims feeling like they’re the ones on trial while perpetrators walk free.

Domestic abuse —Not that long since marital rape was criminalised

It’s worth remembering that rape within marriage wasn’t made a crime until 1991. The growing number of cases involving men drugging their wives or partners before sexually abusing them suggests some perpetrators are simply finding new ways to commit these crimes without their victims ever knowing.

One case that dragged this horrifying reality into the spotlight was Gisèle Pelicot’s one in France. Instead of staying anonymous, she chose to let the world know what had happened to her so her husband’s crimes — and those of the dozens of men who abused her — couldn’t be hidden away. She wanted people to see the scale of the abuse and make it harder for crimes like this to stay in the shadows.

However, since then, this practice seems to be becoming more prolific, suggesting it may have inspired men rather than disgusted them. Given Pelicot’s husband also likely abused his daughter with pictures taken showing her sedated, this carries a huge risk of harm for children as well as women across the UK.

The NCA has further issued a warning to parents about public access to school or personal photos of children due to the rise of AI-generated sexual abuse material making it clear that children are also becoming increasingly vulnerable in UK society to the disgusting fantasies of men.

Using drugs to cover their tracks — emboldening abusive men

The fact that some offenders are now drugging their victims to cover their tracks takes women’s fears to another level. After all, it creates a horrifying situation where someone can be abused without even knowing it’s happened. That doesn’t make it a victimless crime — it makes it one where the victim has no idea what they’ve been subjected to.

That should send a chill down everyone’s spine. It’s about time we stopped pretending this isn’t a growing problem and started having a serious conversation about the threat posed by men and their sordid fantasies, and what more should be done to stop them.

Yes, potential victims can take steps to reduce their risk, but they shouldn’t have to and that only goes so far. Until we tackle the growing number of perpetrators who believe they can act with impunity, they’ll keep pushing the boundaries and escalating their abuse.

Ellie Butt, head of policy and public affairs at Refuge, insisted that:

Women and girls deserve meaningful protection from all forms of domestic abuse, including online abuse, not a fragmented response that allows perpetrators to act with impunity. Refuge is calling on tech companies to take proactive action to detect and prevent this abuse, while UK regulators – including Ofcom – must adopt a coordinated approach to tackling online VAWG.

Only a cohesive and comprehensive response can match the scale of this abuse and provide women and girls with the protections they deserve.

With the use of sedative drugs, we might not even know about it until their sordid and often violent abuse is taken too far with life-changing — or life-ending — consequences.

As a woman and a mother, that is a future I do not consent to — and neither should you.

Featured image via HelpingSurvivors