Danish police recover body parts of slain journalist
STOCKHOLM — The Danish police said Saturday that divers had recovered the severed head and legs of Swedish journalist Kim Wall in a bay, as well as crucial evidence that is inconsistent with a Danish inventor’s explanation of how she had died on his submarine.
Jens Moller, the chief investigator in the case, said at a news conference outside police headquarters in Copenhagen that the divers had found plastic bags containing body parts and clothing belonging to Wall in Koge Bay, southwest of Copenhagen, on Friday.
“We have found the head and two legs but we have not found her arms,” Moller said.
Wall disappeared after meeting Peter Madsen, 46, an amateur space rocket and submarine builder, for an interview Aug. 10 and a trip on his homemade submarine. Her torso was found on a beach on Amager Island, near Copenhagen, 11 days later. He was later charged with manslaughter, which in Danish law is the equivalent of murder.
Medical examiners inspected the new evidence Friday night, Moller said, adding that there appeared to be no damage to the skull, which was identified with dental records.
“I don’t want to speculate about what happened,” the chief investigator said. “I can only say that there are no fractures or other injuries to the cranium.”
That contradicts Madsen’s account, in which he said Wall, 30, had died after a heavy hatch on the submarine’s tower collapsed on her head.
The divers, who were assisted by Swedish dogs trained to work in water, discovered the head and clothes in bags. Later, her legs were found attached to pieces of metal similar to ones found with her torso on Aug. 21, Moller said.
Police officers have speculated that the metal may have been used to weigh down the body parts at sea.
The team also found a plastic bag containing an orange sweater and stockings belonging to Wall, as well as a knife. Moller did not say if investigators had linked the knife to the stab wounds found on the victim’s torso.