Luka Rocco Magnotta, a former porn actor, was sentenced to life in 2014 for the first-degree murder of Jun Lin, a Chinese computer engineering student at Concordia University in Montreal. The crime shocked Canada and remains notorious.
The Victim: Jun Lin
Jun Lin, 33, moved from Wuhan, China, to Montreal in 2010 for a new life. He was a gay man who had been married to a woman but divorced. He had not told his family about his sexuality. After a breakup, he used websites to meet men, where he encountered Magnotta.
The Killer: Luka Rocco Magnotta
Born Eric Clinton Kirk, Magnotta changed his name in 2006. Diagnosed with schizophrenia, he claimed disability but worked as an escort and appeared in adult films. He sought fame through cosmetic surgeries and social media, planting false rumors—including a claim he dated serial killer Karla Homolka. He had prior fraud convictions.
In 2010-2011, Magnotta filmed himself suffocating kittens and drowning a cat, leading to an animal cruelty investigation.
The Murder and Dismemberment
In May 2012, Magnotta met Jun Lin at his apartment. A day later, a video showed Magnotta stabbing Jun repeatedly, then feeding parts to a dog. He sexually assaulted the corpse with a wine bottle as New Order's 'True Faith' played. Media reported evidence of cannibalism.
After the murder, Magnotta fled to Paris. Jun's friends reported him missing on May 28. The next day, the Conservative Party of Canada received a package with Jun's left foot. Another package to the Liberal Party contained his left hand. Jun's torso was found in a suitcase; police later found a note in Magnotta's wardrobe: 'If you don't like the reflection, don't look in the mirror, I don't care.'
The killer sent three more body parts: a right foot to St. George's School and a right hand to False Creek Elementary School. By June 13, all body parts were matched to Jun. His head was found on July 1 after an anonymous tip.
Arrest and Trial
Interpol issued a red notice. Magnotta was arrested in Berlin on June 4, 2012, reading about himself in an internet cafe. He was returned to Canada on June 18, 2012. At his 2014 trial, he admitted to killing and dismembering Jun but pleaded not guilty by reason of mental illness. The jury found him guilty of first-degree murder, committing an indignity to a human body, publishing obscene material, and criminally harassing Prime Minister Stephen Harper. He showed no emotion and will serve at least 25 years before parole eligibility.
Jun's father, Diran Lin, gave a victim impact statement: 'The night Lin Jun died, parts of many other people died in one way or another... I had come to see your trial system to see justice done, and I leave satisfied that you have not let my son down.'
