'Eunuch-maker' pervert who mutilated men was brought down by West Country victim

A depraved man who performed extreme body modifications and ran a sinister website was apprehended thanks to the courage of a victim from the West Country. The pervert, known for mutilating men, was reported to Devon and Cornwall Police in 2020.

The victim came forward with details about the procedures he endured, supplying around 5,000 WhatsApp messages and 100 images that ultimately led to the arrest and conviction of the twisted Marius Gustavson for his appalling offences. The 26-year-old has been sentenced to life imprisonment after committing acts of castration and other gruesome mutilations, which he then broadcasted on the internet.

The Norwegian criminal also severed men's penises, testicles, and legs, showcasing these barbaric acts on his "eunuch maker" website, where viewers paid for access. Gustavson attracted nearly 23,000 subscribers globally and profited almost £300,000 from his macabre enterprise.

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The Old Bailey was told of his chilling collection: a freezer stocked with male body parts and how he prepared a testicle salad for himself. Gustavson had even amputated his own leg and subsequently claimed £18,500 in disability benefits.

The downfall of his gruesome operation was due to the bravery of an unnamed victim, whose identity is protected by law. This individual recounted to the police the harrowing experience of being cut with a scalpel by Gustavson in his North London flat.

The victim, who was "high on drugs" at the time, was also strapped to a bed and subjected to electric shocks. During a previous court hearing, prosecutor Caroline Carberry, KC, revealed: '"Gustavson set up a website on which he advertised extreme body modification services such as male castration and penis removal."

"It is an incredible feature of this case the website operated in plain sight, not on the dark web, but accessible to anyone who stumbled upon it and had the inclination and the means to view the gruesome footage. This footage, which is extremely explicit, was uploaded."

"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. Gustavson was involved in a minimum of 30 procedures."

In Gustavson's defence, Rashvinderjeet Panesar told the court: "When it came to an end it sent him into a spiral. His modification led him to feelings of empowerment. It appears at face value to be something that's become an addiction for him."

Gustavson pleaded guilty to conspiracy 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. Six other defendants also admitted to the conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm.

Peter Wates, 67, from Purley, Surrey, a retired member of the Royal Society of Chemists, was handed a 12-year prison sentence. Janus Atkin, 38, from Newport, Gwent, who was studying veterinary science, received a 12-year jail term.

Ion Ciucur, 30, from Gretna, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, was sentenced to five years and eight months in prison, while Stefan Scharf, 61, of no fixed address, was given a four-and-a-half-year jail term. David Carruthers, 61, and Ashley Williams, 32, both from Newport, Gwent, were sentenced to 11 years and four years six months respectively.

Earlier this year, three men were sentenced after admitting to causing grievous bodily harm to Gustavson. Damien Byrnes, 36, from north London, was jailed for five years for removing Marius Gustavson's penis with a kitchen knife on video at his home on 18 February 2017.

Jacob Crimi-Appleby, 23, of Epsom in Surrey, was sentenced to three years and eight months in prison for causing Gustavson's leg to freeze, leading to its amputation in February 2019. Meanwhile, Nurse Nathan Arnold, 48, from South Kensington, west London, was handed a two-year suspended sentence for partially removing Gustavson's nipple with a scalpel in the summer of 2019.