'Perfect neighbour' turns cannibal and his victim 'agreed' to be eaten

In a horrifying case of cannibalism, a killer devoured his consenting victim over a period of 10 months following a macabre pact between the two.

Armin Meiwes infamously consumed the flesh of Bernd Brandes, who had agreed to be eaten, in a gruesome saga that lasted nearly a year.

Meiwes had placed a ghastly advertisement titled 'Dinner - or your dinner' on a German internet forum multiple times, seeking someone willing to be consumed.

The ad caught the eye of Bernd, a 43-year-old engineer, back in 2001. Meiwes, then aged 42, welcomed his voluntary victim to his home in Rotenburg, situated in Germany's south.

There, Meiwes administered a powerful mix of sleeping pills and schnapps to subdue him before cutting off his penis. The pair then consumed it together, reports <a href="https://www.themirror.com/news/world-news/perfect-neighbour-killed-fried-ate-1237917" rel="Follow" target="_self">the Mirror US</a>.

As reported by the Mirror, what ensued was another grotesque act involving the consumption of Bernd's back flesh. In the documentary Docs: Interview With a Cannibal, Meiwes recounted: "I took out my best dinner service, and fried a piece of rump steak – a piece from his back – made what I call princess potatoes, and sprouts."

Meiwes narrated his initial experience of eating human flesh as an extraordinary feeling. He expressed: "The first bite was, of course, very strange. It was a feeling I can't really describe. I'd spent over 40 years longing for it, dreaming about it."

He added: "And now I was getting the feeling that I was actually achieving this perfect inner connection through his flesh. The flesh tastes like pork but stronger."

In a chilling ritual, Meiwes meticulously arranged his dinner table with candles, ready to indulge in the forbidden feast he had been "longing" for throughout his life. Following the meal, Bernd, who was still conscious, was placed in a bath while Meiwes recited from a Star Trek novel before ultimately delivering the fatal blow by stabbing him in the neck, leading to Bernd's demise.

Meiwes then horrifically dismembered his victim and buried the body parts in his garden, saving some of the flesh in his freezer for future consumption over the next 10 months. He was arrested in December 2002 and concocted a tale for the police, claiming the meat in his freezer was wild pig.

The former computer repairman had a sinister obsession with cannibalism, a dark fantasy that began in his adolescence.

During the trial, he maintained the engineer "came to me of his own free will to end his life. For him, it was a nice death."

Investigations later revealed the victim had an extraordinary wish to be mutilated and had seemingly agreed to Meiwes' ghastly craving as a compromise, fearing institutionalisation if he chose to continue living.

Over the course of a month, the duo exchanged messages daily, meticulously crafting their chilling agreement. This led to Bernd selling his car, wiping his computer clean, and leaving his possessions to his partner in a written note before he left.

In January 2004, Meiwes was found guilty of manslaughter and sentenced to eight years and six months behind bars. However, following a retrial in May 2006, he was convicted of murder and handed a life sentence.

Now aged 63, he remains in prison.

By April 2023, Meiwes' former residence, which served as the scene of the horrific crime, had been destroyed in an arson attack.