On the 13th of April 2008, at the Montana State Prison, the world heaved a sigh of relief. It said good riddance to one of the most depraved and unrepentant psychopaths in the United States history. His name was Nathaniel Bar-Jonah.
You may have heard of him, but it’s more likely that you haven’t. His story isn’t exactly the kind people tell over a game of cards before dinner.
Nathaniel Bar-Jonah had been serving a 130-year prison sentence before his death. The 51-year-old had been convicted of kidnapping, aggravated assault, and sexual assault.
He was also suspected of killing a child and serving up the child’s meat to unsuspecting neighbors.
There was no conclusive evidence for his cannibalism. Still, the circumstantial evidence was damaging, and even a kindergartener could connect the gruesome dots.
The heavyset Massachusetts man’s crimes made a lot of headlines at that time.
And they would still turn a lot of stomachs today. Here are ten things you will want to know about him. If you’re sure you can hold your lunch, that is.
10 /10 Victim Of Child Abuse?
Bar-Jonah may have been abused and even raped as a child. This is according to the court records of his psychiatric evaluations. His siblings, however, knew of no such event. “Nathan comes from a functional family, and there’s been a lot of things misconstrued,” said his brother.
It is likely that an abusive event at a young age triggered his strange habits and urges. Those habits had begun to show themselves when he was as young as six.
9 /10 A Craving For Flesh
Bar-Jonah’s strange curiosity over the taste of human flesh was first noticed in 1963. He was just six at that time. He had been caught picking at his scabs till they festered. He would then begin to suck his blood from the wound.
This habit was unsettling to his teachers at Webster Elementary School. They called his mother severally to complain to her, but try as they might, Nathaniel didn’t quit the habit.
It seemed to give him sexual excitement. He kept it up till his death in Montana State Prison, nearly 45 years later!