For nearly a year, many local residents have followed the story of the so-called "cannibal cop."
Former police officer Gilberto Valle, once one of New York's finest, is currently on trial for allegedly planning to kidnap, torture, and eat several women, as part of an conspiracy with an accomplice. Valle, of Queens, is also accused of misusing a police database to further research his targets.
This disturbing case has been the focus of a great deal of media attention, mainly due to the incredibly disturbing nature of these accusations. His defense has claimed that his internet searches on how to kidnap, torture, and prepare women to be cooked and eaten are all a part of his elaborate sexual fantasies and were not going to be made reality.
However, where do fantasy end and real-life begin? Speaking about a specific fantasy with a group of like-minded people often makes the fantasy itself seem more real than it actually may be. However, since he is accused of misusing a police database to research his targets, perhaps it is likely that the fantasy was slowly becoming a reality. Specific women, some of whom have also testified at the trial, were even targeted for abduction and murder.
While we all may have some dark fantasies, most of us will not act on them, and the alleged plot was exposed before anything was ever carried out, so the defense has a good argument that this was all just talk.
No doubt that these fantasies seem very disturbing to most of us. However, we are more likely to keep these to ourselves for fear of judgement. Hopefully, in this case, a jury can look past the many disturbing elements of Valle's alleged fantasy life, which has become the biggest factor in the case, and reach a verdict that will be fair.
Comments