US man charged with cannibalism believed eating flesh would cure his brain

PTI, Dec 21, 2021, 12:08 PM IST

A 39-year-old Idaho man apprehended for a murder allegedly believed that eating his victim would “cure his brain”. The murder accused, James David Russell , has been charged with cannibalism after his alleged statement. This may be the first cannibalism charge in Idaho.

Russell was arrested in September for murdering a 70-year-old man, David Flaget. Russell was charged with first-degree murder after authorities found the Flaget’s remains in a vehicle outside of Russell’s home. The deceased’s hands were tied with duct tape and some of his body parts were missing, reported Daily Beast.

When cops came by Russell’s house, he had a short argument with them. Later, when he surrendered, he said: “It’s private property and we don’t like non-family on it.”

The cops reportedly found a ‘blood-soaked microwave, glass bowl, duffel bag and knife during their search of Russell’s home.

Bonner County Detective Phillip Stella said: “When dealing with death and carnage, it’s a shock to our conscience.” Stella added that Russell’s cannibalism charge may be the first in the state of Idaho.

“It wasn’t the bloodiest crime scene, but it’s more of the psychological, ‘What the heck is going on here?’ and ‘Why am I picking up pieces?’ It’s a walk down the dark path that we don’t see very often,” Stella further said.
The authorities and the court documents stated that Russell believed he would be able to “heal himself by cutting off portions of flesh”.

The tissues found in Russell’s home were confirmed to have been of Flaget’s in an autopsy completed on September 13, three days after the murder, confirmed that the tissues found in Russell’s home belonged to Flaget.

Some of the 70-year-old’s remains have still not been found.

“Flaget had several conflict-like run-ins with Russell and told the family about them,” Stella said. “The family had enough warning signs that Russell was a danger to himself or others.”

Russell is scheduled for a review hearing on December 28.

With India Today inputs