A Danish court found Peter Madsen guilty of the murder of journalist Kim Wall and has sentenced him life in prison. The decision was handed down in a unanimous ruling by three judge panel in Copenhagen on Wednesday, the New York Times reported.
One of those judges, Anette Burkoe, described the crime as “a cynical and planned sexual murder of a severe brutal nature against a random woman,” according to CNN.
Madsen, an inventor, was convicted of killing Wall while the journalist was traveling with him on his customized homemade submarine in August 2017.
According to the court, Madsen tortured, sexually assaulted and ultimately killed Wall in a meticulously planned murder while she was on board. He then dismembered the body and released the remains into the ocean.
Madsen — who has maintained his innocence — has promised an appeal.
“My client and I are not satisfied with the result,” said his attorney Betina Hald Engmark in a terse statement reported by the Times. Madsen maintained that Wall died in an accident on board and that he then released the body into the ocean.
When Wall’s remains were recovered, however, investigators found evidence of multiple stab wounds. Additionally, videos of women being killed and asphyxiation sex were found on his computer. Madsen also had a psychiatric evaluation ordered during the trial which concluded he was a “narcissistic psychopath.”
The killer displayed no emotion when the verdict was read.