Josef Fritzl Pleads Guilty to All Charges - BBC News Video

Josef Fritzl, Austrian man who enslaved his own daughter Elisabeth, in a basement cellar for 24 years and fathered 7 children by her, has pleaded guilty to all charges against him (Murder, rape, incest, enslavement, coercian & false imprisonment) after seeing his daughters video testimony.  On Wednesday 18th March 2009, he stated in court, ‘I Plead Guilty’ and on questioning about the baby that died he said ‘I should have done more’.

Josef Fritzl, who repeatedly raped his daughter and fathered seven of her children, has pleaded guilty to murder at his trial in Austria.  The 73-year-old told the court in St Poelten: “I plead guilty to (all) the charges in the indictment.”   Fritzl had previously pleaded guilty to incest with his daughter Elisabeth, now 42, but denied murdering their newborn son in 1996.  The infant, a twin, died three days after he was born and the prosecution had claimed the baby would have survived if Fritzl had sought medical assistance.  He has also admitted enslaving Elisabeth and her children in the windowless purpose-built cellar under his home. She was kept there for 24 years.  One Austrian newspaper claimed Elisabeth was physically present in the courtroom on Tuesday. Fritzl’s lawyer Rudolf Mayer declined comment but said there were people in the viewing gallery whom he did not identify.  The jury also watched a “very stressful” video statement made by Elisabeth. Court spokesman, Franz Cutka, said: “The (recording) took some days and was indeed a very stressful experience for the victim.”  Jurors in the so-far largely closed-door trial have been offered counselling, he said.  A video of one of Elisabeth’s brothers was also played.  Mr Cutka said: “(Fritzl) watched the video recordings with great attention and care.”   He added that the verdict should be read one day earlier than expected, on Thursday.  Prosecutors said Fritzl repeatedly raped his daughter in front of the children marooned underground, using her as if she was his own property.  Fritzl’s abuses came to light last April when he took 19-year-old Kerstin, the eldest child born below ground, to hospital when she was seriously ill.

Here is the CNN News clip:

Here is an earlier ITN News coverage before Fritzl’s admission of guilt: