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Austrian Town Holds Vigil for Dungeon Family

Posted Apr 30, 08 7:00 AM CDT in Crime & Courts,  World 

(Newser) – Hundreds of people gathered last night for a candlelit vigil in the Austrian town where a man locked his daughter in a basement dungeon for 24 years and fathered her seven children. Emotional residents stood in the rain to demonstrate solidarity with the captive family, the BBC reports. "We want to show that Amstetten is not a town for criminals," said the mayor.

Residents gathered as more details continued to emerge in the incredible tale. Josef Fritzl, 73, left his dungeon family to whoop it on a boys-only beach vacation in Cyprus years ago, according to photos printed by the Sun. By contrast, his imprisoned family never saw daylight until they were freed last week. Authorities are considering providing the family with new identities to shield them from the media spotlight.

Sources: BBC, Guardian (UK), Sun (UK)

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People with candles are seen at the main square of Amstetten during a night vigil commemorating the victims of the incest crime , Austria, on Tuesday, April 29, 2008.   (AP Photo/Kerstin Joensson)
A woman places a candle at the main square of Amstetten, Austria,during a night vigil for members of the Fritzl family.   (AP Photo/Kerstin Joensson)
A sidewalk cafe is deserted as a mother and her son pass by in Amstetten, Lower Austria , Tuesday, April 29, 2008.   (AP Photo/Diether Endlicher)
The exterior of josef Fritzl's apartment block is seen in Amstetten, Austria, Tuesday, April 29, 2008.   (AP Photo/Kerstin Joensson)
A view of the hospital in Amstetten, Austria where one of the children of a 42-year-old woman who was held captive by her father for 24 years is being treated on Monday, April 28, 2008.   (AP Photo/Kerstin Joensson)
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kidnapping • child abuse • Josef Fritzl • incest • Elisabeth Fritzl • Amstetten, Austria


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