Josef Fritzl, the Austrian sexual offender who fathered seven children with his wife while locking her in a cellar for 24 years, may be transferred from prison to a nursing home after a fresh psychiatrist’s evaluation declared him to be “harmless”. reports RTE.
He was confined to a facility for mentally ill criminals in March 2009 after receiving a life sentence.
As per an unpublished study by a new psychiatrist, Fritzl, who is currently 88 years old and has dementia, is deemed “harmless” and may be eligible for release from prison.
Astrid Wagner, his attorney, stated that her client is “dangerousness has diminished”.
“That was also obvious to me. On the one hand there is dementia, on the other hand, he has also become physically very frail. My client told me that he wants to be released from prison in the foreseeable future,” Ms Wagner said, reports RTE.
“This is also possible because he has already served at least 15 years. This means that it is foreseeable that he can be released from prison. The first step, however, is an expert opinion confirming that his dangerousness has been reduced. This expert opinion was obtained by Dr Adelheid Kastner, who already examined him 15 years ago, and has now clearly confirmed that my client is no longer dangerous,” she added, reports RTE.
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