According to multiple reports, Marius Gustafsson, the ringleader of a British radical body modification group, offered Damian Barnes, 36, a pay-per-view video in exchange for castration in February 2017. He admitted that he paid the money.
Mr Gustafsson paid Mr Burns £500 for the surgery. The British Times reported. His website has earned him over £200,000. According to the Telegraph. (Related: Federal authorities bust irregular prostitution ring allegedly serving politicians and military personnel)
Burns, Jacob Crimi Appleby, 23, and Nathaniel Arnold, 48, pleaded guilty to causing serious bodily injury with intent. According to the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). Male bodyguard Damian Barnes has reportedly been sentenced to five years in prison.
Crimi Appleby admitted that Gustafsson's leg froze and required amputation. According to the Telegraph. Arnold, a former nurse, reportedly confessed to cutting off part of Gustafsson's nipples in 2019 using anesthetic she stole from her workplace at Chelsea Westminster Hospital. Arnold also pleaded guilty to possession of extreme pornography, the Telegraph reported.
According to the BBC, KC prosecutor Caroline Carbery named Burns among nine other people charged with radical body modification. Carberry reportedly told the court that Gustafson referred to himself as a “eunuch maker” and was involved in “numerous” extreme body modification surgeries.
The Times reported that Gustafsson received £17,987 in disability benefits after his leg froze and had to be amputated. Police have reportedly identified more than a dozen mutilation victims on his website, but many have yet to be traced.
Barnes told the court he was “appalled and ashamed” by his actions in 2017. According to Metro. His agent, Lisa Bird, reportedly argued that traumatic experiences from his Catholic upbringing in Ireland led to drug addiction and despair.
“This case is unique. It's completely different from other cases I've handled,” said judge Mark LeCraft KC. Bracknell News reported.
