Idaho man charged with cannibalism ‘believed eating victim would cure him’

Human tissues were found inside James David Russell’s home

(Bonner County Sheriff’s Office )

An Idaho man has been charged with murder and cannibalism after the death of a 70-year-old man.

James David Russell, 39, is suspected in the alleged killing of 70-year-old David M Flaget in September after authorities found human “tissues” inside Russell’s home.

Mr Flaget was found by Bonner County Sheriff’s Office “unresponsive inside a vehicle” outside the suspect’s home in Clark Fork, Idaho on 10 September.

Not all of Mr Flaget’s remains we recovered, the Bonners Ferry Herald reported.

Investigators reportedly took a blood-stained microwave and a blood-soaked knife away from the scene.

According to charging documents, Russell believed he could “heal himself by cutting off portions of flesh” in order to “cure his brain”, authorities said.

“When dealing with death and carnage it’s a shock to our conscience,” Bonner County detective Phillip Stella said on Thursday.

“As far as I know this is the first cannibalism charge in Idaho.”

If convicted Russell could become the first person to be imprisoned in Idaho for cannibalism, which was formally banned in the 1990s. He faces up to 14 years for the charge.

Detective Stella said: “There’s a lot of facets we will certainly never know.

“It wasn’t the bloodiest crime scene, but it’s more of the psychological, ‘What the heck is going on here?’ and ‘Why am I picking up pieces?’ It’s a walk down the dark path that we don’t see very often.”

Russell had been arrested following a brief stand-off with sheriff’s deputies. A trial in October was suspended following his referral to the Idaho Security Medical Program, the results of which have been sealed.

He is scheduled to appear for a review hearing on 28 December.