Josef Fritzl may walk free after enslaving and raping his daughter for 24 years
The lawyer of Austrian criminal Josef Fritzl has applied to have him released from prison to a dementia centre.
FILE Josef Fritzl pictured prior the proclamation of his sentence on the fourth day of his trial on March 19, 2009. Picture: AFP PHOTO/POOL/HELMUT FOHRINGER
Adam Gilchrist joins 702’s Bongani Bingwa.
Listen below:
Josef Fritzl lured his daughter Elizabeth into a modified basement in their home, where he held her captive for 24 years.
He convinced his wife that Elizabeth ran away willingly to join a cult.
He sexually abused her repeatedly, leading to her birthing seven of his children.
“He held her captive as a sex slave in a dungeon that he built.”
- Adam Gilchrist
Three of the children were raised by Fritzl and his wife after he claimed Elizabeth left them on the doorstep.
One of the children died shortly after birth, and Elizabeth was forced to raise the other three in a locked bunker with no windows.
She eventually escaped after one of her children required medical attention and Fritzl allowed her to go to the hospital.
He has been imprisoned since 2009.
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Fritzel wants to be released to a dementia centre ahead of his 90th birthday.
“He thinks people will celebrate and queue up to shake his hand if he is freed from prison. I think he may be in for a shock.”
- Adam Gilchrist
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