Dane accused of mutilating women in South Africa faces jail

A Danish man accused of mutilating women in South Africa and storing their genitals in his freezer has been convicted of dozens of charges.

Published: 7 November 2017 16:12 CET

Dane accused of mutilating women in South Africa faces jail

Frederiksen on trial in Bloemfontain in 2015. Photo: Gianluigi Guercia/AFP/Scanpix

Peter Frederiksen was found guilty of 36 offences in the Free State High Court on Monday including producing child pornography, raping a minor and conspiracy to murder, local media reported.

Frederiksen, a gun shop owner in his 60s, pleaded not guilty to all charges. He will be sentenced at a later hearing.

Twenty charges related to the removal of human tissue were dropped as the court found that the law did not clearly specify what penalties should apply for the alleged crimes.

Police discovered more than 10 pieces of frozen female genitalia at Frederiksen's Bloemfontein townhouse in September 2015.

His wife, 28-year-old Anna Matseliso Molise, was set to be the state's key witness but she was gunned down in October 2015 outside her house in Maseru, capital of neighbouring Lesotho.

South Africa has legislation prohibiting female circumcision, although it is not a common practise in the country.

The 39-year-old Polish man is suspected of punching Frederiksen on June 7th as she walked in central Copenhagen, leaving her with a minor whiplash injury.

“The court has decided that the suspect will remain in custody until July 4th,” a court official told AFP, following a hearing that lasted less than an hour.

The man, who was arrested immediately after the incident, has denied responsibility and says he has no recollection of what happened.

Frederiksen, 46, underwent a medical examination afterwards and was diagnosed with a “contusion on her right shoulder and a minor whiplash injury”, according to her office.

A medical certificate was presented to the court on Thursday.

Frederiksen and several witnesses have been questioned in the ongoing investigation, police said.

In police questioning, relayed to the court on Thursday, Frederiksen said the man approached her and uttered something incomprehensible, then hit her on the shoulder with a closed fist, Danish news agency Ritzau reported on Thursday.

According to prosecutor Line Steffensen, the man was drunk and had stolen alcohol from a grocery store just prior to his encounter with the prime minister.

Steffensen said the man had been arrested on several occasions for shoplifting since moving to Denmark five years ago.

Frederiksen became Denmark’s youngest ever prime minister when she was elected in 2019, aged 41. She won re-election in 2022.

She said after the attack that she was “shaken” and did not take part in the final day of campaigning for the EU election.