On Day 1 of his trial for murder and incest, Austrian admits to imprisoning his daughter Elisabeth for 24 years
On Day 1 of his trial for murder and incest, Austrian admits to imprisoning his daughter Elisabeth for 24 years
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Hide and seek: Defendant Josef Fritzl hides his face behind a blue file folder prior to his trial. |
Speaking in a thick local accent, he said: "I did not have a good relationship with my mother.
"She used to stop me having any friends. I had a very troubled childhood and at times I was taken away and put into a foster home.
"At the age of 12 I found the strength to face her and from that moment on I was Satan for her."
But the prosecutor at the packed court in St Poelten dismissed Fritzl's pleadings, saying the "real truth" was that Fritzl drugged his daughter, dragged her into the cellar and was in "complete control" of her for the next 24 years.
The details of what has been described by one state official as 'the worst criminal trial in Austria's history' are so horrific that the court is sitting for limited hours each day to avoid traumatising the jury, who are being offered counselling.
The court was told that Fritzl imprisoned Elisabeth in a tiny pre-prepared cellar, measuring just 200 sq ft in August 1984, then kept her tied "on a leash" for 24 hours a day.
He eventually untied her nine months later, but only to make it easier to rape her on a daily basis. In total, he is thought to have raped Elisabeth more than 3,000 times.
Elisabeth, aged just 18 when her ordeal began, gave birth to the first of their children entirely alone, with just a self-help pregnancy book, a pair of scissors and some nappies to help her cope. Fritzl did not bother to visit her or bring supplies for the baby for 10 days after the birth.
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