India, Feb. 11 -- French investigators say a decades-spanning serial rape case involving 89 alleged victims came to light after a relative handed over a USB drive containing detailed writings by the suspect himself.

The accused, identified as 79-year-old Jacques Laveugle, is charged with raping and sexually assaulting minors over a period of more than 55 years, a case that has shocked France.

Prosecutors said the investigation hinges on a digital "memoir" discovered on a USB drive, which contained what authorities described as 15 volumes of dense writings compiled by the suspect, reported AP.

These writings enabled investigators to identify 89 alleged victims, boys aged between 13 and 17 at the time, with incidents dating from 1967 to ...