By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Writer
The 73 year-old Austrian man who fathered seven children with a daughter he kept confined in a basement “dungeon” pleaded guilty Wednesday to all charges against him.
The trial has begun in one of the worst cases in the criminal history of Austria. Joseph Fritzl is accused of incest, false imprisonment, negligent homicide, enslavement and rape for imprisoning his now 42 year old daughter Elisabeth in the basement of the family home for 24 years. During that time, he repeatedly raped her and fathered seven children with her, one of whom died in infancy due to lack of medical care. Fritzl confessed to later burning the baby’s body and scattering the ashes in the garden.
“I declare myself guilty to the charges in the indictment,” Fritzl told a panel of judges.
He also described his actions as “sick behavior,” admitting to his lawyers that he was always aware that what he did was wrong.
Fritzl’s lawyer, Rudolf Mayer, said he believes his client is mentally ill, and should not go to prison, but remain in a psychiatric unit.
However, a court-ordered psychiatric assessment in October found that he was aware of his actions during the 24-year period, despite suffering a “profound personality disorder,” and was fit to stand trial.
According to police records, Josef Fritzl had been leading a double life for the last 24 years, appearing as a respectable member of the community in the small town of Amstetten with his wife Rosemarie and their seven children.
However, Fritzl had a dark side. He was convicted of raping a woman in Linz in 1967 for which he served time in prison. When Elisabeth was 11 years old, he began raping her. As she grew into adolescence, she began running away from home, each time being caught and returned to her parents.
Finally, in 1984, while her father was renovating the basement into what amounted to a soundproof vault, he convinced his daughter to help him and thus lured her into captivity. For 24 years, Elisabeth remained locked in the cellar while her father convinced her mother that she had run away and joined a cult. He would even force Elisabeth to write letters now and again to show her mother and keep her convinced of the ruse.
During this time, Elisabeth gave birth to seven children, receiving no medical attention. Three of these children were adopted by Fritzl who convinced his wife that Elisabeth was sending them the children because she couldn’t care for them. The other three surviving children lived with Elisabeth in three windowless, soundproof chambers which amounted to an area of about 650 square feet.
The courtroom heard a gripping 11 hour videotaped testimony from Elisabeth, now 42, who is currently undergoing psychiatric care with three of her children. Even though Fritzl claimed his sexual relationship with his daughter was “consensual,” Elisabeth told police she was chained to a wall while he raped her.
Fritzl was eventually caught when one of the children fell unconscious and had to be rushed to the hospital. Elisabeth hid an SOS note on the child which was discovered by health care workers and turned over to police.
If convicted, Fritzl faces a maximum of 20 years in prison.
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