Joachim Kroll
Encyclopedia
Joachim Georg Kroll was a German
serial killer
and cannibal. He was known as the Ruhr Cannibal (Ruhrkannibale), Ruhr Hunter (Ruhrjäger) and the Duisburg Man-Eater (Duisburger Menschenfresser). He was convicted of eight murders but confessed to a total of 13.
, Province of Upper Silesia
, Kroll was the 6th of 9 children. He was a weak child and used to wet the bed
. His education was poor, only reaching Grade 3. (Later psychiatrists found he had an IQ
of 76.)
After the end of World War II
, in which his father had become a prisoner of war, Kroll's family moved to North Rhine-Westphalia
.
and found work as a toilet attendant for Mannesmann
. Afterwards he worked for Thyssen
Industries and went to 24 Friesen street, Laar, a district of Duisburg. At that time he resumed killing people.
he had for this purpose.
Kroll was immediately arrested.
Kroll said that he often sliced portions of flesh from his victims to cook and eat them, claiming that he did this to save on his grocery bills. In custody, he believed that he was going to get a simple operation to cure him of his homicidal urges and would then be released from prison. Instead he was charged with eight murders and one attempted murder. In April 1982, after a 151-day trial, he was convicted on all counts and was given nine life sentences.
He died of a heart attack
in 1991 in the prison of Rheinbach.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
serial killer
Serial killer
A serial killer, as typically defined, is an individual who has murdered three or more people over a period of more than a month, with down time between the murders, and whose motivation for killing is usually based on psychological gratification...
and cannibal. He was known as the Ruhr Cannibal (Ruhrkannibale), Ruhr Hunter (Ruhrjäger) and the Duisburg Man-Eater (Duisburger Menschenfresser). He was convicted of eight murders but confessed to a total of 13.
Early life
Born the son of a miner in Hindenburg (Zabrze)Zabrze
Zabrze is a city in Silesia in southern Poland, near Katowice. The west district of the Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union is a metropolis with a population of around 2 million...
, Province of Upper Silesia
Province of Upper Silesia
The Province of Upper Silesia was a province of the Free State of Prussia created in the aftermath of World War I. It comprised much of the region of Upper Silesia and was eventually divided into two administrative regions , Kattowitz and Oppeln...
, Kroll was the 6th of 9 children. He was a weak child and used to wet the bed
Bedwetting
Nocturnal enuresis, commonly called bedwetting, is involuntary urination while asleep after the age at which bladder control usually occurs. Nocturnal enuresis is considered primary when a child has not yet had a prolonged period of being dry...
. His education was poor, only reaching Grade 3. (Later psychiatrists found he had an IQ
Intelligence quotient
An intelligence quotient, or IQ, is a score derived from one of several different standardized tests designed to assess intelligence. When modern IQ tests are constructed, the mean score within an age group is set to 100 and the standard deviation to 15...
of 76.)
After the end of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, in which his father had become a prisoner of war, Kroll's family moved to North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia is the most populous state of Germany, with four of the country's ten largest cities. The state was formed in 1946 as a merger of the northern Rhineland and Westphalia, both formerly part of Prussia. Its capital is Düsseldorf. The state is currently run by a coalition of the...
.
Crimes
He began killing in 1955, after his mother died. Around 1960, Kroll went to DuisburgDuisburg
- History :A legend recorded by Johannes Aventinus holds that Duisburg, was built by the eponymous Tuisto, mythical progenitor of Germans, ca. 2395 BC...
and found work as a toilet attendant for Mannesmann
Mannesmann
Mannesmann AG was a German corporation with headquarters in Düsseldorf. The company was founded in 1890 originally to produce seamless steel tubes. It was traded on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. The company had 130,860 employees worldwide and revenues of €23.27 billion.Over time, Mannesmann...
. Afterwards he worked for Thyssen
Thyssen
See also variant spellings including Thiessen.Thyssen may refer to:*The Thyssen family, which has many notable members including:**Friedrich Thyssen**August Thyssen**Fritz Thyssen**Bodo Thyssen**Heinrich, Baron Thyssen-Bornemisza de Kászon...
Industries and went to 24 Friesen street, Laar, a district of Duisburg. At that time he resumed killing people.
List of victims
- 8 February 1955 - Irmgard Strehl, 19, rapeRapeRape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse, which is initiated by one or more persons against another person without that person's consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority or with a person who is incapable of valid consent. The...
d and stabbed to death. Her disemboweledDisembowelmentDisembowelment is the removal of some or all of the organs of the gastrointestinal tract , usually through a horizontal incision made across the abdominal area. Disembowelment may result from an accident, but has also been used as a method of torture and execution...
body was found in a barn in LüdinghausenLüdinghausenLüdinghausen is a municipality in the district of Coesfeld in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located on the Dortmund-Ems Canal, approx. 25 km south-west of Münster...
. - 16 June 1959 - Klara Frieda Tesmer, 24, murdered in the meadows of the Rhine, near RheinhausenRheinhausenRheinhausen is a district of the city of Duisburg in Germany, with a population of 79,566 and an area of 38.68 km². It lies on the left bank of the river Rhine....
. A mechanic, Heinrich Ott, was arrested for the crime. He hung himself in jail. - 26 July 1959 - Manuela Knodt, 16, raped and strangled in the City Park of EssenEssen- Origin of the name :In German-speaking countries, the name of the city Essen often causes confusion as to its origins, because it is commonly known as the German infinitive of the verb for the act of eating, and/or the German noun for food. Although scholars still dispute the interpretation of...
. Slices of flesh were carved from her buttocks and thighs. - 1962 - Barbara Bruder, 12, abducted in BurscheidBurscheidBurscheid is a town in the Rheinisch-Bergischer district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The town is known for its sub-communities and the town centre with its marketplace and churches....
. Her body was never found. - 23 April 1962 - Petra Giese, 13, raped and strangled in Dinslaken-BruckhausenDinslakenDinslaken is a city in the district of Wesel, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is known for its harness horse race track, its now closed coal mine in Lohberg and its wealthy neighborhoods Hiesfeld and Eppinghoven.- Geography :...
. Vinzenz Kuehn is arrested and convicted. - 4 June 1962 - Monika Tafel, 12, killed in Walsum, slices of flesh carved from her buttocks. Walter Quicker is arrested for the crime. He is released but is driven by neighbors to suicide in October.
- 22 August 1965 - Hermann Schmitz and his girlfriend Marion Veen were attacked as they sat in a car in a lover's lane in Duisburg-GroßenbaumDuisburg- History :A legend recorded by Johannes Aventinus holds that Duisburg, was built by the eponymous Tuisto, mythical progenitor of Germans, ca. 2395 BC...
. Hermann - Kroll's only male victim - was killed, but Marion escaped. - 13 September 1966 - Ursula Rohling, strangled in Foersterbusch Park near Marl. Her boyfriend Adolf Schickel committed suicideSuicideSuicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
after being falsely accused of the crime. - 22 December 1966 - Ilona Harke, aged 5, raped and drowned in a ditch in WuppertalWuppertalWuppertal is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located in and around the Wupper river valley, and is situated east of the city of Düsseldorf and south of the Ruhr area. With a population of approximately 350,000, it is the largest city in the Bergisches Land...
. - 12 July 1969 - Maria Hettgen, 61, raped and strangled at HückeswagenHückeswagenHückeswagen is a town in the north of Oberbergischen Kreis, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is part of the governmental district of Cologne,-Geography:...
. - 21 May 1970 - Jutta Rahn, 13, strangled walking home from a train station. Peter Schay was arrested and eventually released. He confessed to the crime in 1976 after being hounded by his neighbors.
- 1976 - Karin Toepfer, 10, raped and strangled in VoerdeVoerdeVoerde is a town in the district of Wesel, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is situated on the right bank of the Rhine, approx. 10 km south-east of Wesel, and 20 km north of Duisburg.-City structure:According to art...
. - 3 July 1976 - Marion Ketter, 4. Parts of her body were in the process of being simmered when Kroll was arrested.
Method
Kroll was very particular about where he killed, only killing in the same place on a few occasions years apart. This, and the fact that there were a number of other killers operating in the area at the time, helped him to evade capture. Kroll would surprise his victims and strangle them quickly. Afterward he would strip the body and have intercourse with it, often masturbating over it again. He would then mutilate and cut off pieces to be eaten later. Upon returning home, he would have intercourse again with a rubber sex dollSex doll
A sex doll is a type of sex toy in the size and shape of a sexual partner for aid in masturbation....
he had for this purpose.
Capture
On 3 July 1976, Kroll was arrested for kidnapping and killing a four-year-old girl named Marion Kettner. As police went from home to home, a neighbor approached a policeman and told him that the waste-pipe in his apartment building had blocked up, and when he had asked his neighbor, Kroll, whether he knew what had been blocking the pipe, Kroll had simply replied; "Guts". Upon this report, the police went up to Kroll's apartment and found the body of the Kettner girl cut up: some parts were in the fridge, a small hand was cooking in a pan of boiling water and the entrails were found stuck in the waste-pipe.Kroll was immediately arrested.
Trial and death
He admitted killing Marion Kettner and gave details of 14 other murders and one attempted murder over the previous two decades.Kroll said that he often sliced portions of flesh from his victims to cook and eat them, claiming that he did this to save on his grocery bills. In custody, he believed that he was going to get a simple operation to cure him of his homicidal urges and would then be released from prison. Instead he was charged with eight murders and one attempted murder. In April 1982, after a 151-day trial, he was convicted on all counts and was given nine life sentences.
He died of a heart attack
Myocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
in 1991 in the prison of Rheinbach.
External links
- Thomas Meiser; http://www.thomas-meiser.de/tcrime/kroll.htm
- The Jockel Project by DDV