Josef Fritzl, the Austrian man who raped and imprisoned his daughter for 24 years, is applying for release from prison, his lawyer has said. Astrid Wagner, representing the 88-year-old, has filed an appeal to have him transferred to a nursing home, citing a recent psychiatric report that deems him no longer dangerous.
Fritzl was sentenced to life in 2009 for the rape, incest, and false imprisonment of his daughter Elisabeth, and the deaths of one of their seven children. He is currently held in a high-security unit for mentally disturbed inmates at Stein prison in Krems, Austria.
Lawyer Wagner said a 28-page report by psychiatrist Heidi Kastner concluded that Fritzl, who suffers from dementia and uses a walking frame, poses no threat. Kastner, who previously described him as 'extremely psychologically abnormal', now says he is physically frail and lacks a sex drive.
Under Austrian law, Fritzl became eligible for conditional release after 15 years in 2023. Wagner argued that he should spend his remaining days in a care home, noting that she would not fear living alongside him. The regional court in Krems is expected to rule in the coming weeks.
