German Cannibal Armin Meiwes: “Looking for a Well-Built Young Man to Be Slaughtered and Then Eaten.”
Those who personally knew Armin Meiwes would never have believed that the helpful, sweet, and charming man would eventually turn out to be labeled the Monster of Rotenburg. Meiwes, a 42-year-old computer expert, had a high reputation around his neighborhood. When he was not working, Meiwes would spend his time assisting his community friends with car repairs and landscaping needs. He would even invite his friendly neighbors over dinner parties. Overall, Meiwes was considered the perfect neighbor, or so everyone thought!
Little did Meiwes’ neighbors know that their local friendly handyman had some very dark secrets of his own. Armin Meiwes had a taste for human flesh, and his trial went down as one of the most extraordinary trials in German history. In February of 2001, Meiwes posted an ad on the internet looking for a “young, well-built man that wanted to be eaten”. Believe it or not, many men replied to the ad. Meiwes went through many of the candidates, and either decided that the candidates were not the right fit or the candidates themselves decided to back out. After many failed attempts of finding the right candidate, Meiwes finally received a message from a man named Bernd Brandes.
He Had His Own “Slaughter Room” Upstairs
Bernd Jürgen Armando Brandes, a 36-year-old computer engineer from Berlin, had always dreamt of being eaten. Suffering from abandonment issues and depression, Brandes thought he would be the perfect fit for Meiwes’ flesh-eating fantasy. Both Brandes and Meiwes exchanged emails for about a month straight before they finally agreed to meet up. On March, 9th, 2001, Brandes went to Meiwes’ farmhouse and was taken up to the master bedroom where they sat around and chatted. Wanting to get on with his big fantasy, Meiwes fed Brandes sleeping pills and told him to wash them down with some Schnapps and liquid cold medicine.
Once Brandes started to feel the effects of the drugs and liquor consumed, Meiwes set up a video camera and began to record the horrendous acts that were about to take place. Meiwes started by sexually mutilating Brandes. He first cut off his penis. While Brandes was still conscious, he asked if he could taste his very own flesh. Following Brandes request, Meiwes broiled the penis and tried to feed it to Brandes. Brandes complained that the penis was too tough to eat.
After trying to eat his own penis, Brandes requested a bath. Meiwes set up a warm bath for Brandes and left him to soak overnight. Come the next morning, Meiwes entered the bathroom and slit Brandes’ throat. He then cut his body into several small pieces. With the video still capturing all of this, Meiwes then pan-broiled the flesh, set the table, and poured himself a large glass of red wine to go with his meal. He then began to eat the human cuisine that he prepared for himself. Once his stomach was fulfilled, he packaged the leftovers and hit the keyboard in hopes of looking for another victim.
An online friend of Meiwes found his flesh-eating online confessions disturbing and contacted the authorities. Once authorities began their investigation, Meiwes already confessed to what he had done. By the time he was caught, Meiwes had already consumed over 45 pounds of Brandes’ human flesh. Following his confession, Meiwes told the authorities that Brandes tasted exactly like pork.
A horrid crime?
The court case gained worldwide media attention, especially after lawyers discovered that it was not illegal to consume another person’s flesh in Germany.
Had Meiwes really committed a crime?
Brandes was a willing participant…
The pair had even managed to record video footage of the grizzly incident (which we will NOT be showing here!).
Meiwes was eventually found guilty of manslaughter and was sentenced to eight years in prison. However, in 2005 he had to sit through a retrial…and was eventually sentenced to life in prison for murder.
The jury agreed that Brandes was probably ‘completely out of it’ when he was being slaughtered – through pills and alcohol. He wouldn’t have been able to resist…even if he had changed his mind.
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