Police Question Dungeon Daughter

Mother, children were imprisoned in basement

(NEWSER) - Elisabeth Fritzl and her children have returned for the first time to the basement where they were imprisoned, the Daily Mail reports, helping police gather evidence for the trial against their father. Police wanted the family to show them precisely where and how they were held captive. The family has been cooperating with police, even crafting a thank-you poster for them. More»

Hounding reporters 'make them feel imprisoned again,' says attorney

(NEWSER) - Austrian authorities are preparing new identities for dungeon dad Josef Fritzl’s entire family, including the daughter he imprisoned in a celler, the six children Fritzl fathered with her, her six adult siblings and her mother. The family members have been hounded by lucrative offers for media interviews, the Times reports. More»

Will be held on camera; press faces jail for reporting

(NEWSER) - The judge in Josef Fritzl’s incest trial kicked press and the public out of the court today ahead of Elisabeth Fritzl’s video testimony in a move to protect her identity, the Guardian reports. Her recorded evidence is being played “in small portions,” a court official said, because it is reportedly excruciating to watch. Four backup jurors are available if matters prove too painful for the eight current ones. More»

Lawyer says dungeon dad's just a guy who wanted a big family

(NEWSER) - Apparently Josef Frizl’s mom made him do it. Austria’s most infamous incestuous rapist today told the court he’d committed his awful deeds because he had a “troubled childhood,” the Daily Telegraph reports. Fritzl regaled the court with the story of his early days, showing emotion only when he discussed his mother, who he said didn't allow him to have friends. Former neighbors have in the past said she beat him regularly. More»

(NEWSER) - Austrian incest dad Josef Fritzl defended his imprisonment of daughter Elisabeth as necessary to stop her abuse of household chemicals, the Daily Mail reports. “She had been sniffing cleaning fluids and I decided I should talk with her in my cellar,” Fritzl said of the day in 1984 that marked the beginning of her captivity. “She reacted to my accusations with a couldn’t-care-less attitude.” More»