MONTREAL – A former Canadian porn actor has admitted at the start of his trial to killing and dismembering a Chinese student, but his lawyer blames the gruesome crime on mental illness.
The court heard Luka Rocco Magnotta, 32, has admitted to the underlying facts in the case, including killing 33-year-old Lin Jun.
But he formally pleaded not guilty to first degree murder, committing indignities to a body, harassing Canada’s prime minister and other charges that could see him jailed for life, if he is convicted.
The jury must now consider his state of mind at the time of the offences, and whether he is criminally responsible.
The defence said it would present medical files and expert witnesses to demonstrate the accused’s long history of mental illness, while the prosecution said it would show the crime was premeditated and not the act of a lunatic.
“Whether Mr Magnotta is exempt from criminal responsibility will be the matter for your deliberations,” defence lawyer Luc Leclair said in opening remarks to the jury.
Mr Magnotta is accused of using an ice pick to fatally stab Mr Lin in May 2012, before sexually abusing and dismembering the man’s corpse, and then posting a video of the heinous act online.
