Why Killers Cannibalize

May 22, 2002 -- For accused child murderer Nathaniel Bar-Jonah, killing 10-year-old Zachary Ramsay was not enough — he allegedly had to make "little boy stew."

Bar-Jonah, who faces sentencing Thursday for separate sexual assaults on two other Montana boys, is expected to face trial for the kidnapping, presumed death and alleged cannibalization of Zachary, who disappeared in February 1996 while on his way to school.

Prosecutors believe Bar-Jonah, who had a long history of child molestation before his alleged encounter with Zachary, abducted the boy and then killed and butchered him. Police suspect he may have fed him to unsuspecting neighbors, who later told investigators the meat they consumed in stew and spaghetti sauce prepared by Bar-Jonah tasted peculiar.

Bar-Jonah denied any involvement in Zachary's disappearance in letters written to the Great Falls Tribune. However, according to court documents, investigators searched Bar-Jonah's home and found writings they say allude to the boy's suspected gruesome fate. Bar-Jonah allegedly makes references to "Little Boy Stew," "Little Kid Dessert," "Little Boy Pot Pies," anal sex and masturbation in these writings. In addition, police say various witnesses claim they saw Bar-Jonah with the clothes Zachary wore the day he disappeared and that he admitted to the slaying.

Why would someone not only kill, but also cannibalize, their victims? Experts say a killer's need to dominate his victim may be a motivation. Devouring a victim is the step beyond taking their life and represents the ultimate conquest and sign of domination to a killer.

"It goes back to the old days of the warrior, where they would defeat their enemy and eat the part they most admired, like their brain or their heart," said George Palermo, forensic psychiatrist at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee, who worked on the Jeffrey Dahmer case. "It's like they're saying, 'I really killed you. The only way you exist is in me.'"

Rooted in Ancient Rituals and Warrior Battles

The practice of cannibalism was recorded as far back as fourth century China and was not seen as a social taboo among various cultures. In fourth century China and other parts of the Far East and various tribal cultures in Africa, Australia, and Papua, New Guinea, soldiers and warriors saw it as the ultimate conquest and revenge against an enemy. It was a way of taking an enemy's greatest trait: eating the heart could symbolize taking a foe's bravery or strength. Eating an enemy's brain could have meant ingesting his intelligence.