an3sdej
09-05-2006, 16:35
German cannibal gets life in jail
Armin Meiwes
Meiwes says he froze body parts and then ate them
A German man who killed and ate an apparently willing victim has been sentenced to life in prison after he was found guilty of murder.
Armin Meiwes, 44, was sentenced to eight-and-a-half years in prison in 2004 after being found guilty of the manslaughter of Bernd Juergen Brandes.
But a judge ordered a retrial after ruling the sentence was too lenient.
During the trial, prosecutors said Meiwes, of Rotenburg, had a "fetish for human flesh" and could re-offend.
This has been one of the most extraordinary trials in German criminal history, says the BBC's Tristana Moore in Berlin.
Meiwes slaughtered his victim like a piece of livestock and treated him as an object of his fancy
A prosecutor in the case
Profile: Armin Meiwes
At the retrial, the prosecution made a graphic case that Meiwes was guilty of murder and argued he should never be released from prison.
In a key moment, a psychologist said Meiwes could reoffend and he himself had admitted he still had fantasies about devouring the flesh of attractive young people, says the BBC's Ray Furlong in Berlin.
A video which Armin Meiwes filmed during the acts of cannibalism was central to the prosecution's case.
They said the video proved that Meiwes killed his victim for his own sexual pleasure.
Armin Meiwes's lawyer had admitted his client had a fetish for human flesh, but always claimed he was no danger to society.
'Rotenburg cannibal'
Mr Brandes had agreed to the idea after making contact with his killer on an internet chatroom - a fact that led the court to convict Meiwes of the less serious charge of manslaughter at his trial in 2004.
Known as the "Rotenburg cannibal", Meiwes placed an advert on the internet before meeting his victim, 43-year-old computer engineer Bernd Juergen Brandes.
The pair met at Meiwes's home in Rotenburg in March 2001, where they had sex before Meiwes cut off Brandes's penis, which the men then cooked and attempted to eat.
Meiwes later stabbed and killed Brandes, before cutting him to pieces and freezing parts of his body, some of which he later ate.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4752797.stm
Armin Meiwes
Meiwes says he froze body parts and then ate them
A German man who killed and ate an apparently willing victim has been sentenced to life in prison after he was found guilty of murder.
Armin Meiwes, 44, was sentenced to eight-and-a-half years in prison in 2004 after being found guilty of the manslaughter of Bernd Juergen Brandes.
But a judge ordered a retrial after ruling the sentence was too lenient.
During the trial, prosecutors said Meiwes, of Rotenburg, had a "fetish for human flesh" and could re-offend.
This has been one of the most extraordinary trials in German criminal history, says the BBC's Tristana Moore in Berlin.
Meiwes slaughtered his victim like a piece of livestock and treated him as an object of his fancy
A prosecutor in the case
Profile: Armin Meiwes
At the retrial, the prosecution made a graphic case that Meiwes was guilty of murder and argued he should never be released from prison.
In a key moment, a psychologist said Meiwes could reoffend and he himself had admitted he still had fantasies about devouring the flesh of attractive young people, says the BBC's Ray Furlong in Berlin.
A video which Armin Meiwes filmed during the acts of cannibalism was central to the prosecution's case.
They said the video proved that Meiwes killed his victim for his own sexual pleasure.
Armin Meiwes's lawyer had admitted his client had a fetish for human flesh, but always claimed he was no danger to society.
'Rotenburg cannibal'
Mr Brandes had agreed to the idea after making contact with his killer on an internet chatroom - a fact that led the court to convict Meiwes of the less serious charge of manslaughter at his trial in 2004.
Known as the "Rotenburg cannibal", Meiwes placed an advert on the internet before meeting his victim, 43-year-old computer engineer Bernd Juergen Brandes.
The pair met at Meiwes's home in Rotenburg in March 2001, where they had sex before Meiwes cut off Brandes's penis, which the men then cooked and attempted to eat.
Meiwes later stabbed and killed Brandes, before cutting him to pieces and freezing parts of his body, some of which he later ate.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4752797.stm