A man has admitted to participating in “castration by clamping” as part of an alleged extreme body modification plot.
Ion Ciucur, 29, a Romanian national who lives in Gretna Green, Scotland, admitted conspiracy to cause grievous bodily harm at the Old Bailey on Thursday.
The prosecutor, Caroline Carberry KC, told the court the offence related to two incidents in July 2019 involving “castration by clamping”.
The incidents are related to a wide-ranging conspiracy involving up to 29 offences of extreme body modifications on 13 victims, the removal and trade of body parts, and the uploading of videos.
Marius Gustavson, who is alleged to have been the ringleader of the conspiracy, is accused of carrying out castrations and publishing the footage on his “eunuch maker” website, which subscribers would pay to watch.
Three men previously admitted removing body parts belonging to Gustavson, who is originally from Norway and now lives in Tottenham, north London.
Nathan Arnold, 48, from south Kensington in west London, admitted the partial removal of Gustavson’s nipple, stealing anaesthetic from Chelsea and Westminster hospital where he worked as a nurse and possessing extreme pornography.
Damien Byrnes, 35, from Tottenham, north London, admitted removing Gustavson’s penis.
Jacob Crimi-Appleby, 22, from Epsom in Surrey, pleaded guilty to freezing Gustavson’s leg, which had to be amputated.
Gustavson’s alleged “right-hand man”, Peter Wates, 66, from Croydon in south London, previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to cause grievous bodily harm between 1 January 2016 and 1 January 2022.
Wates was alleged to have been involved with nine of the 29 incidents.
Ashley Williams, 31, from Newport, south Wales, admitted removing another man’s testicle.
The defendants are said to have been part of a society in which people willingly undergo extreme body modification. The practice is linked to a subculture in which men become “nullos” – short for genital nullification – by having their penis and testicles removed.
Gustavson and others will next appear for a further hearing at the Old Bailey on 19 December.
