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A Copenhagen court has sentenced eccentric inventor Peter Madsen to life in prison over the murder of Kim Wall, a journalist who was killed after joining Madsen on his submarine last August. Parts of Wall's body were recovered after Madsen claimed he "buried her at sea."

The case has captivated Denmark and drawn international headlines, with its shocking and gruesome details, and Madsen's wildly shifting explanations for what happened.

The submarine had left a dock in Copenhagen's harbor on Aug. 10, 2017. But one day later, the sub sank. Madsen was rescued; he initially told police he had let Wall off of the sub after just a few hours. But it was also noted that he had fresh scratches on both arms. No sign of Wall was found until some of her remains washed ashore. After the submarine was recovered and brought on land, blood in the craft was matched to Wall's DNA.

The discovery of Wall's body prompted Madsen to say that a horrible accident killed Wall — but Danish authorities were skeptical of that story.



Madsen claimed that after the Swedish journalist accompanied him on the UC3 Nautilus for a planned profile, she "died when a heavy hatch escaped his grip and fell shut on her head," as 

But, as reporter Sidsel Overgaard notes for NPR:

Madsen later admitted to dismembering Wall's body, reportedly after investigators found those grisly videos on his computer.

 that in addition to a homicide charge, Madsen would face accusations that included "indecent handling of a corpse, and other sexual relations than intercourse with the female Swedish journalist, Kim Wall."
Wall's death brought an outpouring of tributes and mourning for the 30-year-old journalist, who had published her work in outlets such as 

Crime, Law and Justice

A Copenhagen court has sentenced eccentric inventor Peter Madsen to life in prison over the murder of journalist Kim Wall.

Danish court sentences inventor to life for woman's murder in 'submarine case'

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