US 'cannibal cop' faces life in jail
2013-03-12 22:37
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New York - A New York City police officer was convicted
of plotting to kidnap, cook and eat women following a trial that shed light on
an underworld of people who derive pleasure from fantasising about cannibalism
online.
A federal court jury on Tuesday also found Gilberto
Valle, 28, guilty on a lesser charge of improperly accessing a law enforcement
database to gather personal information about potential targets, including his
now-estranged wife.
Prosecutors said Valle, who was dubbed the "cannibal
cop" by the tabloid media, crossed the line from fantasy to reality in
taking specific action, conspiring to kidnap women.
Valle's attorney, Julia Gatto, countered that her client
was merely engaged in fantasy role-play online.
Valle faces up to life in prison on the charge of
conspiracy to kidnap and up to one year in prison for the database breach when
he is sentenced on 19 June.
His lawyers said they would appeal.
"This is a dangerous prosecution, when we start
opening up our minds and prosecuting what's inside our brains and not in the
real world," Gatto said.
"We totally believe the government did not prove
their case and the jury couldn't get past the thoughts."
US attorney Preet Bharara said the jury found Valle had
taken a step into the real world and the criminal realm.
"Today, a unanimous jury found that Gilberto Valle's
detailed and specific plans to abduct women for the purpose of committing
grotesque crimes were very real, and that he was guilty as charged,"
Bharara said in a statement.
"The internet is a forum for the free exchange of
ideas, but it does not confer immunity for plotting crimes and taking steps to
carry out those crimes."
Awaiting the verdict, Valle and Gatto hung their heads as
they sat side by side, and when the jury read "guilty" their
shoulders slumped in unison.
Moments later, as they stood, Valle shook his head, then
draped his arms around Gatto, tears welling up in his eyes.
Jury commended
Judge Paul Gardephe commended the jury of six women and
six men, who had deliberated since Thursday, for reaching a verdict in the
often grisly trial. Evidence included "human meat recipes" and images
of women roasting on a spit.
"Sitting in judgment of another human being is
difficult. This case in particular has not been an easy one... (with) material
that degrades the human spirit," Gardephe told the jury.
Federal prosecutor Hadassa Waxman said in her closing
argument that Valle was at one point engaged in fantasy, but that his
intentions had grown more sinister.
Pointing to his extensive online research on kidnapping,
making chloroform and cooking women, she said, "These are real searches
conducted to carry out real research to kidnap real women."
Gatto, the defence lawyer, told jurors that after nearly
a year of fantasising about approximately two dozen women - in many cases,
discussing kidnapping with other fetishists - none of the plotters had ever
met, exchanged money or committed any crimes.
Valle did not take the witness stand. His now-estranged
wife Kathleen Mangan, 27, was the first prosecution witness in the case and
testified about how she discovered her husband's plans to torture her when she
looked on her laptop, which he had been using, last autumn.
She said she read how she was to be tied up by her feet
and her throat slit.
The former New York City schoolteacher testified that she
contacted authorities and fled with their young daughter to live with her
parents in Nevada.
