On Monday, a man in London, England was sentenced to at least 24 years in prison for strangling a police officer he met on Grindr. After killing the victim, the man dismembered his body and allegedly practiced cannibalism. Then, the man tried to dissolve his body parts in acid, Breaking Bad-style.
According to the Guardian, 50-year-old Stefano Brizzi, who was addicted to crystal meth at the time of his arrest, murdered 59-year-old police officer Gordon Semple in April. The two men met through the gay dating app Grindr. Both men were interested in BDSM, and Semple went to Brizzi's apartment on April 1 for a "hot, dirty, sleazy, session." Semple was not seen again until parts of his body were found in Brizzi's apartment about a week later after neighbors complained about the smell.
When first arrested, Brizzi admitted to killing Semple because "Satan told me to." According to the Guardian, police found a copy of the satanic bible as well as handwritten notes to the devil in Brizzi's apartment. But Brizzi later changed his story, saying that Semple's death happened accidentally during a sex game when a dog leash around his neck slipped. Police did find a mask and dog leash in the apartment, according to the Independent. However, pathologists concluded that Semple's death would have taken much longer than an accidental slip of a dog leash.
Brizzi strangled Semple to death, but he didn't stop there. Four days later, Brizzi was seen on security footage buying equipment like plastic buckets, carpet cleaner, pincers, heavy-duty scissors, a putty knife, and more, according to the Guardian.
Brizzi used the tools to dismember Semple, whose remains were found floating in the bath, in bags, and in plastic buckets on the floor, according to BBC. Brizzi told police that he also "chucked" other body parts into the River Thames. The killer, who was obsessed with Breaking Bad, tried to dissolve some of the body parts in acid, copying the method of the show's lead character Walter White.
Additionally, bite marks were found on Semple's rib, which was discovered in Brizzi's kitchen bin. Pools of fat and grease were found inside Brizzi's oven, and the oven handle had blood stains, according to the Guardian. Semple's DNA was found in the oven as well as on chopsticks and in a cooking pot.
Brizzi's lawyer blamed his drug addiction for his behavior and said he had "absolutely no recollection" of the heinous crime and was "utterly horrified by it." She argued, "The behavior can only be ascribed to taking of the drug crystal meth, which, as the court will know, has appalling effects on those who become addicted to it."
Brizzi was sentenced to life in prison, with a minimum of 24 years served.
