Ringleader of extreme amputation website gets life sentence

The ringleader of a lucrative extreme body modification website sharing gruesome footage of castrations and amputations has been jailed for life after he was found with a freezer filled with “trophy” body parts.

Marius Gustavson’s “Eunuch maker” pay-per-view website shared footage of people undergoing “dangerous, unnecessary and life-changing surgeries” carried out in people’s homes, a court was told – including male genitals being removed.

The Old Bailey in London heard the extreme body modification enterprise operated on an unprecedented scale with a “staggering” 22,841 registered users and raked in almost £300,000 before it was shut down.

Before he was arrested, mastermind Gustavson was involved in up to 30 procedures between 2017 and 2021, requiring hospital treatment himself after having his leg and his penis removed in one.

The 46-year-old, of Haringey, north London, has previously admitted charges including conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm.

He appeared for the third day of a sentencing hearing yesterday alongside six other men who had all admitted their part in the wide-ranging conspiracy.

Among them were Peter Wates, a retired former member of the Royal Society of Chemists, and Janus Atkin, who had been completing a veterinary course, the court heard.

Passing sentence at the Old Bailey, Judge Mark Lucraft described the behaviour of the defendants as amounting to “little more than human butchery” in some cases, bringing them sexual and financial gratification, while one victim said he was left with physical, emotional and psychological damage.

Addressing Gustavson, who can be heard giving “encouragement and direction” in clips on the site, the judge said: “You are very much the mastermind behind this grisly and gruesome enterprise. The business you set up was both busy and lucrative.”

However, he stated the others were “willing participants”.

Gustavson was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum of 22 years; the others received sentences between six and four years.

The court heard Gustavson was driven towards the subculture by a desire to be “the architect of his own body” after his marriage broke down and “it sent him into a spiral”. (© The Independent)