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Danish Court Sentences Inventor To Life For Woman's Murder In 'Submarine Case'
A Copenhagen court has sentenced eccentric inventor Peter Madsen to life in prison over the murder of Kim Wall, a journalist who was killed after joining Madsen on his submarine last August. Parts of Wall's body were recovered after Madsen claimed he "buried her at sea." The case has captivated Denmark and drawn international headlines, with its shocking and gruesome details, and Madsen's wildly shifting explanations for what happened.
The submarine had left a dock in Copenhagen's harbor on Aug. 10, 2017. But one day later, the sub sank. Madsen was rescued; he initially told police he had let Wall off of the sub after just a few hours. But it was also noted that he had fresh scratches on both arms. No sign of Wall was found until some of her remains washed ashore. After the submarine was recovered and brought on land, blood in the craft was matched to Wall's DNA. The discovery of Wall's body prompted Madsen to say that a horrible accident killed Wall — but Danish authorities were skeptical of that story.
[...] "Prosecutors have said they do not know exactly how Wall did die, but that the murder seemed to be premeditated judging from the range of unusual instruments found on board. Much of the case against Madsen was built on his untrustworthiness, a psychological evaluation that found him narcissistic and lacking in empathy, and torture videos found on his computer."
The court ordered Madsen to pay about $19,700 to Ole Stobbe, Kim Wall's boyfriend. Wall had been pursuing an interview with Madsen for months, and was a few days away from moving to Beijing with Stobbe when Madsen texted her. The court also ordered the recovered submarine to be destroyed.
Also at Ars Technica.
Previously: Submarine Builder Charged With Manslaughter After Burying Journalist at Sea
Search of "Rocket" Madsen's Space Lab Finds Footage of Woman's Decapitation
Submarine Builder Peter Madsen Admits to Dismembering Journalist
(Score: 4, Insightful) by terrab0t on Thursday April 26 2018, @11:01AM (15 children)
From the summary:
What if he didn’t own his own self built submarine?
What if the murder took place at his home?
Would the court order his house burned to the ground?
Or perhaps spare the house, but wreck his large model train set with sledge hammers.
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Thursday April 26 2018, @11:40AM (2 children)
Not rational, I know, but here's a question for you: would you insist in your (share of) property if that property was instrumental in committing an atrocious murder?
(also, does it say somewhere that the other owners - assuming there are some - won't be compensated?)
Do you suggest this is the case? Or is it just a rhetorical question?
(my question above still stands in this case: would you live in a house where torture and a brutal murder have been committed?)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0
(Score: 1) by khallow on Thursday April 26 2018, @04:11PM
Depends on the value of the property. I'm not going to throw away an apartment complex. But I would sell a car for parts, if it happened to be instrumental.
I almost certainly will have to deal with irrational people about this matter. A lot of grief can be saved by simply not having the property.
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday April 26 2018, @08:34PM
Yes, why wouldn't I?
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday April 26 2018, @11:40AM
Peter Madsen doesn't own the submarine (named UC3 Nautilus) according to this article (sorry it's in Danish): https://ekstrabladet.dk/112/peter-madsens-ubaad-udsat-for-haervaerk/6999966 [ekstrabladet.dk]
It's own by two investors of which one of them has stated that they don't want the sub back.
(Score: 2) by black6host on Thursday April 26 2018, @11:42AM (5 children)
It's simply meant as a deterrent to others who might aspire to luring, torturing, killing and dismembering someone on their submarine. Quite logical, really! :)
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Thursday April 26 2018, @12:09PM (3 children)
This may send a wrong message: if you go down on luring, torturing, killing and dismembering someone on a submarine owned by others, then your aren't going to care too much what happens with the submarine.
That is... unless you go on a frenzy of such activity and you end in a crisis of others' submarines... in which case the prices of submarines will skyrocket like driven by the free market fairy. Hang on... looking on the market price of submarines... you reckon this has already happened? (grin)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday April 26 2018, @12:43PM (1 child)
So … buy submarine, murder on other people's submarines, profit from rising prices? :-)
(Score: 4, Informative) by c0lo on Thursday April 26 2018, @12:58PM
Sounds like a good approach to market (grin)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0
(Score: 2) by bob_super on Thursday April 26 2018, @06:14PM
> if you go down on luring, torturing, killing and dismembering someone on a submarine owned by others,
> then your aren't going to care too much what happens with the submarine.
Have you tried Uber Sub yet?
They've already got all the basic pieces in place. I just worry they'll get greedy on the blood cleaning charge.
(Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Thursday April 26 2018, @07:22PM
I think it's not the first time it's happened with private citizens. Cartels have been using custom-built submarines [wikipedia.org] to smuggle drugs for a while now, so it's quite likely not the first time somebody got murdered in one. The difference is the cartels have lots and lots of money to bribe their way out of trouble and probably aren't as apt to blab to the authorities as this fellow was.
Washington DC delenda est.
(Score: 5, Interesting) by MostCynical on Thursday April 26 2018, @12:00PM
In this particular case, was it just removing a potential theme-park attraction, to prevent ghoulish tours ("climb on board the submarine of death!")?
"I guess once you start doubting, there's no end to it." -Batou, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday April 26 2018, @12:19PM (2 children)
It's probably more in line with:
ordered the seized drugs to be destroyed, or, order to destroy the counterfeit goods, ...
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday April 26 2018, @12:45PM (1 child)
The difference is that those drugs or counterfeit goods are themselves illegal. There's however nothing illegal about the submarine as such.
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday April 26 2018, @01:01PM
Or so the lizard people want you to think. I mean, stepping into their territory can't go unpunished.
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday April 26 2018, @02:29PM
They demolished Fred and Rose West's house.