His actions caused horror: Notorious cannibal now wants to be an influencer
Purbalingga (Indonesia) - Indonesian Sumanto (52) ate at least three corpses, was convicted and served time in prison. Now the cannibal has reformed and senses his chance to make it as an influencer.
His actions caused horror - now he wants to put his past behind him.
When the police found the mortal remains of an elderly woman in the field worker's modest dwelling in January 2003, the cannibal could not deny his crime - the evidence was too overwhelming.
Sumanto, who only goes by one name, admitted to having opened the woman's grave, abducted her body and partially eaten it. In addition, the "Indonesian Hannibal Lecter" admitted to two other, very similar acts, reported the news website Kompas.id.
In a sensational trial, Sumanto was only sentenced to five years in prison for theft. In 2006, three years after the crime, the cannibal was released on good behavior.
The reason for the lenient sentence: desecration of corpses and cannibalism were not yet considered separately in the Indonesian penal code at the time.
Sumanto is reformed
After his time in prison, the convicted cannibal returned to his home village. Neither his family nor the village community wanted him there. Sumanto was chased out of the village and has been living in a psychiatric clinic ever since.
There, the now 52-year-old says, he has come to terms with his actions and embarked on the "path to redemption", reports the portal"Berita Satu". The convicted cannibal affirms: "My activities include dancing, singing, sport and reading the Koran."
He claims to have completely renounced human flesh. By his own admission, he has switchedto saté skewers.
This is how the ex-cannibal presents himself on Instagram
Sumanto is now also making a name for himself as an influencer. The lean man likes to share his wisdom, give motivational speeches, and can be filmed fishing or doing sport. He also shares his meals with his followers. He has 18,000 profiles on Instagram alone. There are 52,000 on TikTok.
The head of the hospital, Dr. Mulyasari, also considers his patient to be reformed. He wants to believe the convicted cannibal. "Sumanto is now better, funnier, friendlier and more human," says the hospital director.