Man admits freezing leg of alleged castration ringleader

A man has admitted freezing the leg of another man accused of being the ringleader of a group carrying out and broadcasting castrations, which led to the limb requiring amputation.

Jacob Crimi-Appleby, 22, of Epsom, Surrey, admitted causing grievous bodily harm (GBH) with intent to Marius Gustavson in 2019.

Mr Gustavson, 45, is accused of leading an extreme body modification operation.

He denied causing GBH with intent to three men on dates in 2018 and 2019.

Mr Gustavson, of Haringey, north London, is accused of leading a wide-ranging conspiracy involving up to 29 offences of extreme body modifications on 13 alleged victims, the removal and trade of body parts, and the uploading of videos to his website.

Warning: Contains graphic descriptions

He is accused of carrying out castrations and broadcasting the footage on his "eunuch maker" subscription website.

The practice is linked to a subculture where men become "nullos", short for genital nullification, by having their penis and testicles removed, the court was told.

At the Old Bailey, Mr Gustavson, originally from Norway, admitted separate charges of making and distributing indecent videos of a child.

He was not asked to enter pleas on other charges, including conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm.

Two other men previously admitted causing GBH with intent in April for removing other body parts belonging to Mr Gustavson, including his penis.

Damien Byrnes, 35, of Tottenham, north London, admitted removing Mr Gustavson's penis on 18 February 2017, and nurse Nathan Arnold, 48, of south Kensington, west London, admitted partially removing Mr Gustavson's nipple.

Arnold also previously admitted stealing anaesthetic from the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, where he worked in 2016, and possessing extreme pornography.

Mr Gustavson's alleged "right-hand man", Peter Wates, 66, from Croydon in south London, also previously admitted in April conspiracy to cause GBH between January 1 2016 and January 1 2022.

He was said to have had "a role as a surgeon in a very large number of procedures".

On Wednesday, other defendants were not asked to enter pleas to charges on the 13-count indictment.

Romanian national Ion Ciucur, 29, who worked in a hotel in Gretna Green, Scotland, is accused of being involved in two incidents in the alleged conspiracy to cause GBH with intent.

Other alleged conspirators are David Carruthers, 60, Janus Atkin, 38, and Ashley Williams, 31, who are all from Newport in Gwent, South Wales.

Judge Mark Lucraft KC set a further plea and case management hearing for 30 June.

A provisional trial of up to eight weeks has been set at the Old Bailey from 4 March 2024.

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