Magnus Gäfgen, born Thomas David Lukas Olsen on April 11, 1975, in Frankfurt am Main, West Germany, came from a modest but stable family background. Despite an unremarkable upbringing, he was academically gifted and showed significant ambition in his early years. In 1996, Gäfgen enrolled at the prestigious Goethe University in Frankfurt to study law, a path that hinted at his intellectual capabilities and professional aspirations.

By the early 2000s, he had managed to cultivate an image of a responsible and educated young man. Outwardly, he appeared to be moving towards a respectable career in the legal profession. However, underneath this image was a man plagued by personal dissatisfaction, financial instability, and deeply rooted narcissism. Friends and acquaintances often described him as introverted, though no prior record of violence or criminal behavior was noted before the crime. In the months leading up to the murder, Gäfgen’s financial situation deteriorated significantly, and he began formulating a plan to extract ransom from a wealthy family. His background in law would later play a disturbing role in how he tried to manipulate authorities and the legal system.

It is notable that Gäfgen changed his name from Thomas David Lukas Olsen to Magnus Gäfgen—a fact that added a layer of complexity to his identity. His transformation from a law student to one of Germany’s most notorious child murderers shocked the nation and raised questions about hidden criminality behind respectable facades.

On September 27, 2002, Magnus Gäfgen orchestrated one of the most chilling crimes in post-war German history: the kidnapping and murder of 11-year-old Jakob von Metzler, a boy from a prominent Frankfurt banking family. Gäfgen lured the child to his apartment under the pretense of friendship. Once inside, instead of keeping him alive for ransom as he had planned, Gäfgen suffocated the boy with a towel shortly after bringing him inside. The act was described by prosecutors as methodical and premeditated.

Despite Jakob already being dead, Gäfgen went on to demand €1 million in ransom from the von Metzler family. Unbeknownst to him, his movements were being tracked by law enforcement. He was arrested shortly after collecting the money. However, the body had not yet been found, and the police were desperate to recover it while it was still assumed Jakob might be alive.

Under extreme pressure, Frankfurt police vice president Wolfgang Daschner authorized threats of torture to be used against Gäfgen. A subordinate officer threatened him with imminent physical pain unless he revealed the boy's location. Under this coercion, Gäfgen confessed, and led police to the child’s lifeless body, which had been dumped in a lake near Hanau.

Gäfgen was charged with murder, kidnapping, and extortion resulting in death, and his trial began in 2003. Despite the illegal tactics used by police during his interrogation, the confession and evidence were allowed, and on July 28, 2003, he was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment, with the court declaring a “particularly grave degree of guilt” (besondere Schwere der Schuld)—a designation that excluded the possibility of early parole after 15 years. His appeals to the Federal Court (May 2004) and Federal Constitutional Court (December 2004) were both denied.

In 2005, Gäfgen filed a case before the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), alleging that the threat of torture violated Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights. In a landmark 2010 ruling (Gäfgen v. Germany, no. 22978/05), the ECHR ruled in his favor on Article 3 but found no violation of his right to a fair trial (Article 6). He was awarded €3,000 in damages—a decision that sparked outrage among the German public.

While in prison at Schwalmstadt in Hesse, Gäfgen completed the first state law examination and even wrote an autobiography titled “Allein mit Gott – Der Weg zurück” (“Alone with God – The Way Back”) in 2005. His later attempt to create a charitable foundation for victims of crime, which would bear his own name, was met with widespread condemnation and ultimately blocked by authorities.

In 2017, Gäfgen applied for parole, but a psychological evaluation in 2018 determined he remained dangerous, and the request was denied. His minimum sentence was set at 23 years, meaning the earliest possibility of release would not occur before September 2025.

The case remains infamous in Germany, not only because of the brutality of the murder but also due to the ethical and legal controversies surrounding Gäfgen's interrogation. It sparked a national debate on police conduct, the use of torture, and the rights of criminal suspects, even in extreme circumstances. The murder of Jakob von Metzler has since been the subject of multiple films, documentaries, and public discourse, solidifying Magnus Gäfgen’s place as one of the most reviled criminals in modern German history.