The decapitated head and legs of a Swedish journalist who died after traveling on a submarine with an inventor earlier this year have been found, the New York Post reports.
Divers on Friday discovered the body parts, as well as clothing belonging to the journalist, in plastic bags that also contained a knife and metal pieces to make them sink. The evidence was located in the same vicinity as where the naked torso of 30-year-old Kim Wall was found in August, according to Copenhagen investigator Jens Moeller Jensen.
Wall’s skull didn’t have any fractures, said Moeller Jensen, who declined to comment about the knife.
Police detained Peter Madsen, a 46-year-old inventor, on preliminary manslaughter charges in connection with Wall’s death. He also is being held on preliminary charges of indecent handling of a corpse.
Madsen has previously claimed that the woman died after she was accidentally struck by a 155-pound hatch on the submarine. He says he subsequently tried to bury her at seat.
But Wall’s torso, which was found in waters near Copenhagen on Aug. 21, had 15 stabs wound in it. And her arms remain missing.
The exact cause of Wall’s death has not yet been confirmed.
A court on Oct. 31 will decide whether to continue detaining Madsen before a potential trial.
Investigators believe that Wall and Madsen did not know each other before the planned voyage. Wall had been working on a story about Madsen, who was hoping to launch a mission to space.
She was last seen alive on Aug. 10 on the submarine as it left Copenhagen.
Madsen was rescued the next day from the submarine, which was sinking, while Wall was nowhere to be found. Police arrested him the same day and have suspected that he intentionally wrecked the vessel.
In the course of the investigation, authorities discovered videos on Madsen’s computer that show women being tortured, decapitated and murdered. The footage appears to be genuine, prosecutor Jakob Buch-Jepsen has said.
Police believe Madsen murdered Wall sometime between Aug. 10 and 11, dismembered her body and then used a belt to attach a pipe to the woman’s torso so it would sink in the ocean.
Investigators believe Madsen then deliberately cut off Wall’s arms, legs and head after she died. Physical indications on the torso suggest that someone attempted to press air out of it to help it sink.
Madsen is awaiting a court-ordered psychiatric examination.
Previous CrimeOnline coverage:
Submarine captain accused of killing a journalist was allegedly into ‘sexual fetish groups’
Autopsy says journalist Kim Wall was stabbed dozens of times, limbs removed with a saw [UPDATE]
[Feature Photo: Handout]
