Latest news with #MariusGustavson
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
He Was Called the 'Eunuch Maker' — and What He Did With the Body Parts Afterward Was Unthinkable
To Marius Gustavson, it was business. To Britain's Crown Court, Gustavson's 'gruesome and grisly' body manipulation enterprise was criminal. Gustavson, a 46-year-old Norwegian national, was sentenced to life in prison in 2024 in England after he was arrested for running a controversial body manipulation service, which often included live streaming himself while abusing the bodies of other human beings who paid him to do it. According to the BBC, Gustavson's website advertised his unlicensed services to provide castration, the freezing of limbs, and other amateur procedures, such as removing nipples and human tissue. The self-described 'Eunuch maker' even branded some paying victims with his nickname's initials 'EM,' a British court heard in May 2024 when he was sentenced to life in prison with a minimum of 22 years served. During his sentencing hearing, prosecutor Caroline Carberry KC said there was 'clear evidence' of cannibalism, according to The Guardian. She described how Gustavson had prepared human testicles as part of a "salad" and stored various body parts in a refrigerator at his home as "trophies." Six others were sentenced for aiding Gustavson and his haphazard body mutilation practice, which primarily took place in hotel rooms and in front of others who paid to watch online, according to The Crown Prosecution Service. Roughly 20,000 subscribers paid to watch along as Gustavson mutilated his customers without any proper medical training or oversight, sometimes using kitchen knives and tools meant for animals, The Standard reported. Some of Gustavson's victims were as young as 16 years old, according to the outlet. 'Gustavson was involved in at least 22 procedures including the removal of victims' testicles, the amputation of penises, clamping of testicles with burdizzo clips (ordinarily used by vets in the castration of cattle), and the insertion of needles into genitalia,' the CPS said at the time. 'He was assisted by another defendant to place his own leg in dry ice which later required amputation meaning he was able to secure disability benefits.' The former Norwegian postal service worker's pay-per-view mutilation website was 'lucrative,' according to prosecutors, who told the British court Gustavson earned nearly 300,000 pounds between 2017 and 2021, when he was forced to close shop and later detained. Gustavson eventually pleaded guilty to 'five counts of causing grievous bodily harm with intent, making an indecent image of a child, four counts of distributing indecent images of a child, possessing extreme pornographic images, and possessing criminal property,' prosecutors said. In April 2025, his attempt to appeal his conviction was overturned by a London court, according to documents obtained by PEOPLE. In the appeal, Gustavson's attorney argued his sentencing was unfair given the fact that 'those who underwent the modifications consented to what was done to them.' One victim testified during Gustavson's 2024 trial that he was 'mesmerized' by the 'Eunuch Maker' and his streams, but admitted he had regrets after going through with a procedure in which he had his testicles clamped while he was strapped to a bed and subjected to electric shocks before being branded with Gustavson's signature 'EM' marking. "I realize I have trusted a wrong person and Gustavson is in fact a lunatic,' the man said, according to The Standard. Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases. Gustavson's defense attorney argued during his sentencing that in addition to carrying out a paid service, the 'Eunuch Maker' was in some ways making people more comfortable in their bodies having dealt with his own body dysmorphia, which ultimately led him to start the pay-per-view website. "He does say he wished to put a smile on other people's faces - he wanted to help,' Gustavson's attorney said, according to BBC. "He was stuck in a body he wanted to make changes to, and understood there were more people out there who wished to do the same." But British authorities didn't see it that way. CPS London Specialist Prosecutor Kate Mulholland alleged Gustavson carried out the mutilations primarily for 'sexual gratification and financial gain' while ignoring 'the risks of performing unnecessary surgery on vulnerable men.' "He actively recruited participants through his website and was paid to stream the footage of these barbaric procedures,' Mulholland said after Gustavson was sentenced to life in prison. "Performing extreme body modifications is against the law and the CPS won't hesitate to prosecute these horrendous crimes." Read the original article on People
Daily Mirror
18-05-2025
- Daily Mirror
Human butchery ring that made £300k from live castrations and cooking testicles
Six members of a depraved 'human butchery' enterprise were sent to prison for between four and 22 years, but instead of showing remorse, they appealed their sentences A twisted gang of 'eunuch makers', whose leader kept his penis in a drawer, have shown little remorse for their sick crimes and even appealed the length of their sentences. Marius Gustavson, Janus Atkin, David Carruthers, Ashley Williams, Damien Byrnes and Jacob Crimi-Appleby were all jailed back in May last year for their horrific crimes related to 'human butchery'. And rather than show remorse for their grave crimes, all six members of the sick 'eunuch makers' gang, led by ringleader Gustavson, even had the cheek to appeal against their sentences ranging from four years to life with a minimum term of 22 years. Gustavson - ' the eunuch maker' - was found guilty of carrying out depraved body modifications, including the removal of penises, testicles and legs. These bloody operations were mostly carried out in Gustavson's North London flat, or at rented apartments and hotels, sometimes using ordinary household implements rather than medical equipment, causing 'great distress' to victims. Many of the grotesque surgeries were filmed and uploaded to Gustavson's 'eunuch maker' website, where some 22,841 'likeminded' subscribers across the globe would pay to watch the gruesome content. Over the course of four years, Gustavson made nearly £300,000, and was involved in at least 30 procedures linked to a subculture known as 'nullos' - an abbreviation of genital nullification - whereby men have their penis and testicles removed. Users of the site could even pay a VIP access price to watch a live penis amputation take place, while penises were put up for online auction with a 'buy it now' button. Detailing the disturbing footage made available to anyone who 'had the inclination', prosecutor Caroline Carberry, KC, said: "Users could pay to subscribe or buy individual videos. There is evidence the victims were promised a sum of money from the video revenue. Gustavson recruited like-minded individuals to assist him in his large-scale, dangerous and disturbing enterprise. 'He was a manipulator of victims, who were themselves vulnerable. It is impossible to know how many procedures took place in the years when the Eunuch Maker website was active." The Old Bailey heard how in one Facetime call with a victim from Sweden, Gustavson told the man to 'maim himself' by cutting off his testicles, telling him: 'You know what to do come on, just push it.' Then, three days later, Gustavson encouraged the man to cut off his penis. In another chilling incident, a victim's calf was branded with the letters 'EM' for eunuch maker. This individual later complained to police about Gustavson and his 'circle of acolytes', prompting an investigation. Norweigan-born Gustavson is a wheelchair user after his own leg was frozen and then amputated. He received £18,500 worth of disability benefits after forcing NHS staff to amputate his left leg by placing it in dry ice for two hours. He has also had his nipple and penis removed and is known to have kept his own severed phallus in a drawer at his home for years after it was cut off. After one nightmarish procedure, Ms Carberry told the court that Gustavson had 'cooked some testicles for lunch' which he ate as part of a salad, taking a number of photos demonstrating his repulsive recipe from 'raw ingredients to an artfully arranged salad platter'. Gustavson pleaded guilty at his trial to conspiring to commit grievous bodily harm, five counts of grievous bodily harm with intent, one count of making an indecent photograph of a child, one count of distributing an indecent photograph of a child and possession of criminal property contrary to Section 329(1) of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002. The 'Arch manipulator' was handed a life sentence, and must now serve a minimum of 22 years before he is eligible for release. Meanwhile, Atkin, Carruthers and Williams, of Newport, Gwent, as well as Ion Ciucur of Gretna, Scotland, Peter Wtes of Purley, Surrey, and Stefan Scharf of no fixed address, pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit grievous bodily harm. Former surgical assistant Carruthers, who stored his own testicles in his chest freezer, was jailed for 11 years while his husband Williams, 32, was given a sentence of four years and six months for helping him remove one of Atkin's testicles. Former veterinary science student Atkin, who was involved in eight procedures, was given a 12-year sentence, Scharf was jailed for four years and six months for removing a testicle from a man in Gustavson's flat. Ciucur was sentenced to five years and eight months. Crimi-Appleby, from Epsom in Surrey, pleaded guilty to causing grievous bodily harm with intent to Gustavson in February 2019, and was sentenced to three years and eight months in prison. Nathan Arnold, a nurse from South Kensington, west London, admitted to having partially removed one of Gustavson's nipples with a scalpel in 2019. Meanwhile, retired chemist Peter Wates, who was involved in nine of the grim procedures, was jailed for 12 years. However, Gustavson was regarded as the 'mastermind' of the gang, with one of his victims telling the court that he was a 'lunatic' who created a 'slick, professional website' through which he could share his gory content. Judge Mark Lucraft, KC, the Recorder of London, said at the time: "Gustavson you are very much the mastermind behind this grisly and gruesome enterprise. It was a business which was both busy and lucrative. "You came to the UK from Norway around 2012 and through your Eunuch Maker website began to advertise so-called body modification procedures. Many of the procedures carried out were filmed and over time the films were produced to an increasingly professional standard. "The footage uploaded was extremely explicit and made available to paying subscribers no doubt so they could watch it for their sexual gratification. It was a large-scale, dangerous and extremely disturbing enterprise. "It appears the victims consented - but as the law in this country makes clear consent is not a defence to what took place. It may be some mitigation, but the performing of such medical processes by the unqualified is eminently dangerous and many may face lifelong issues. "All the procedures were carried out by the medically unqualified in environments far from sterile. They were conducted in amateurish and dangerous ways. In some instances, it is little more than human butchery. "In some cases, medical equipment is used, in others normal household implements were used. In some equipment was used which is usually used to castrate livestock. Many videos were overtly sexual or had clear sexual overtones, many caused great distress and some resulted in the need for immediate emergency medical treatment. "I am entirely satisfied the motivations of all involved was a mix of sexual gratification as well as sexual reward. In many of the filmed procedures, the consequence is severe blood loss and many are in clear and acute pain. One is heard on film saying he does not want to die. To many of those looking at this case the activity at the very least will appear to be disgusting and abhorrent." However, common sense prevailed and all six gang members lost their appeal to have their sentences reduced at an appeal last month.
Sky News
30-04-2025
- Sky News
Mastermind behind 'eunuch maker' extreme body modification ring Marius Gustavson loses sentence appeal
The mastermind behind the "eunuch maker" extreme body modification ring has lost an appeal against his life sentence. Warning: The following article contains graphic details of extreme physical mutilation Norwegian national Marius Gustavson, 47, was told he must serve a minimum term of 22 years when he was jailed at the Old Bailey last year. He made almost £300,000 through his eunuch maker website, where thousands of users paid to watch procedures including castrations, the court heard. The life-changing surgeries, described as "little short of human butchery" by the judge, were carried out by people with no medical qualifications, who he had recruited. Prosecutors said there was "clear evidence of cannibalism" as Gustavson - who had his own penis and nipple removed and leg frozen so it needed to be amputated - cooked testicles to eat in a salad. Gustavson, who was said to have been involved in almost 30 procedures, pleaded guilty to charges including conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm between 2016 and 2022. Nine other men admitted their involvement in the ring, which one victim said had a "cult-like" atmosphere. Gustavson and five others jailed over their roles in the plot challenged their sentences. Janus Atkin, 39, David Carruthers, 62, Ashley Williams, 33, were jailed for 12 years, 11 years and four and a half years respectively after admitting conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm (GBH). Damien Byrnes, 37, was jailed for five years and Jacob Crimi-Appleby, 24, for three years and eight months after pleading guilty to causing GBH to Gustavson. Lawyers for the men argued the sentencing guidelines did not properly take into account a scenario in which people had consented to be assaulted. But in a 25-page judgment, three judges dismissed the appeals. Lord Justice William Davis said: "The sentences were intended to give a message to anyone minded to engage in highly dangerous procedures involving body modifications. "That reflected an appropriate purpose of sentencing." The Old Bailey heard extreme body modification is linked to a subculture where men become "nullos", short for genital nullification, by having their penis and testicles removed. Victims included a 16-year-old boy and one said he went to police after feeling he was "tricked" into a procedure while under the influence of drugs. Gustavson used a red hot iron to brand a man's calf with the letters EM - eunuch maker - while a dice game was played to decide what body parts would be removed from another. When officers raided his north London home, they found body parts, including testicles, kept in takeaway tubs in his freezer, while Gustavson's own penis was found in a drawer almost four years after it was amputated.
Wales Online
30-04-2025
- Wales Online
Man who cooked and ate human testicles in salad loses appeal
Man who cooked and ate human testicles in salad loses appeal Marius Gustavson also had his penis removed with a kitchen knife Marius Gustavson, who led the extreme body modification ring (Metropolitan Police/PA) The leader of an extreme body modification ring, who once cooked human testicles to eat in a salad, has lost a challenge against his sentence at the Court of Appeal. Marius Gustavson, who also had his penis removed with a kitchen knife, was jailed for life with a minimum term of 22 years last year for his role in the enterprise, which carried out male castration, penis removal and other procedures on people as young as 16. He challenged his sentence at the Court of Appeal in February alongside Janus Atkin, David Carruthers, Ashley Williams, Damien Byrnes and Jacob Crimi-Appleby, who all received jail terms of between three years and eight months and 12 years for their part in the plot. At the hearing earlier this year, lawyers for the men argued that sentencing guidelines used to determine how long they should be jailed for did not adequately take into account a scenario where people had given consent to be assaulted. But in a ruling on Wednesday, Lord Justice William Davis, Mr Justice Griffiths and Judge Simon Drew KC dismissed all six appeals. In the 25-page judgment, Lord Justice William Davis said that the sentencing judge 'carried out a difficult sentencing exercise' and that the case was 'extremely unusual'. He said: 'The adjustments made to the sentences to allow for the unusual circumstances were reasonable and proportionate. The sentences were intended to give a message to anyone minded to engage in highly dangerous procedures involving body modifications. 'That reflected an appropriate purpose of sentencing.' Article continues below Lord Justice William Davis also said that they 'endorse the general approach taken by the judge in reflecting consent', and that the reduction in Gustavson's sentence for this was 'generous'. He said: 'Because cases of consensual grievous bodily harm are rare, consistency must give way to the judge in each case assessing the issue of consent by reference to the individual circumstances of the case.' He continued: 'The judge was correct to use the guideline to reach an appropriate sentence and then to make some deduction to allow for the element of consent.' The Old Bailey heard last year that extreme body modification is linked to a subculture where men become 'nullos', short for genital nullification, by having their penis and testicles removed. Prosecutor Caroline Carberry KC told the court that Gustavson netted more than £300,000 between 2017 and 2021 after posting videos of various procedures on his Eunuch Maker website. The Norwegian once cooked human testicles to eat in a salad and also froze his own leg so it needed to be amputated, with Ms Carberry saying he was linked to at least 29 procedures and that there was 'clear evidence of cannibalism'. The court heard that the defendants used a wide variety of tools, including clamps used for animal castration, with body parts put up for auction online with a 'buy it now' button. Gustavson also offered to sell the severed penis of one of his victims for hundreds of pounds, with some 22,000 subscribers paying to access videos on the Eunuch Maker website with varying levels of membership from 'free' to 'VIP' which cost £100. He was arrested after he used a red-hot iron to brand a man's calf with the letters EM – for Eunuch Maker – and after he was detained, police found his penis in a drawer of his home in Haringey, north London, four years after it had been amputated. He later pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit grievous bodily harm, five counts of grievous bodily harm with intent, making and distributing an indecent photograph of a child, and possession of criminal property. The other defendants also admitted their part in the conspiracy relating to 13 victims. Atkin, Carruthers, and Williams, of Newport, Gwent, were jailed for 12 years, 11 years and four years, six months respectively for conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm. Byrnes, of north London, and Crimi-Appleby, of Epsom, Surrey, were jailed after admitting causing grievous bodily harm to Gustavson. Article continues below Byrnes was jailed for five years for removing Gustavson's penis with a kitchen knife on video at his home on February 18 2017. Crimi-Appleby was jailed for three years and eight months for freezing Gustavson's leg, leading to the need for it to be amputated in February 2019.
