Men admit removing man's body parts including penis

The men appeared at The Old Bailey in London

Two men have admitted removing body parts, including the penis, of a man accused of being the ringleader of a group carrying out and broadcasting castrations.

Damien Byrnes, 35, admitted removing Marius Gustavson's penis and nurse Nathan Arnold, 48, admitted partially removing Mr Gustavson's nipple.

The men, of London, admitted causing grievous bodily harm (GBH) with intent.

Mr Gustavson, 45, is accused of leading an extreme body modification operation.

Warning: Contains graphic descriptions

A third man, who prosecutors said was a "key player, who had a role as a surgeon in a very large number of procedures", also admitted several offences.

Peter Wates, 66, from Croydon in south London, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to cause GBH between 1 January 2016 and 1 January 2022.

'Leg amputation'

Procedures, including the removal of penises and testicles, were allegedly filmed and uploaded to a payable subscription "eunuch maker" website, run by the alleged ringleader Mr Gustavson, the Old Bailey heard.

The practice is linked to a subculture where men become "nullos", short for genital nullification, by having their penis and testicles removed, the court was told.

Wates, Byrnes and Arnold appeared in court alongside Mr Gustavson and five other defendants who were not asked to enter pleas.

One of those defendants yet to enter a plea, Jacob Crimi-Appleby, 22, from Epsom, Surrey, is accused of freezing Mr Gustavson's leg requiring amputation. He is charged with causing GBH with intent.

Arnold, of South Kensington, west London, who admitted the partial removal of Mr Gustavson's nipple in the summer of 2019, also pleaded guilty to the theft of local anaesthetic lidocaine from the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, where he worked in 2016.

He accepted a further offence of possessing extreme pornography.

Byrnes, of Tottenham, north London, admitted removing Mr Gustavson's penis on 18 February 2017.

Thirteen alleged victims

Mr Gustavson, originally from Norway, is accused of being the ringleader in a wide-ranging conspiracy, involving up to 29 offences of extreme body modifications, the removal of body parts, the trade in body parts and the uploading of videos to his website.

The Metropolitan Police has said the charges relate to 13 alleged victims.

The defendants were arrested after a series of police raids in London, Scotland and South Wales.

Mr Gustavson, from Tottenham, north London, is charged with conspiracy to cause GBH with intent between 2016 and 2022, as well as five counts of causing GBH to five alleged victims.

The five GBH charges include the alleged removal of a man's penis, the clamping of another's testicles and freezing of a leg, which required amputation.

He is also charged with acquiring or possessing criminal property, making an indecent image of a child and distributing an indecent image of a child.

The five other defendants yet to enter pleas are:

• Ion Ciucur, 29, from Gretna Green, Dumfries and Galloway, who is charged with conspiracy to commit GBH with intent

• Jacob Crimi-Appleby, 22, from Epsom, Surrey, who is accused of freezing Mr Gustavson's leg requiring amputation. He is charged with causing GBH with intent

• Other alleged conspirators are David Carruthers 60, Janus Atkin, 38, and Ashley Williams, 31, all from Newport

A further hearing was set for 31 May and a plea and case management hearing on 30 June.

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