Overview
- The Budapest Metropolitan Court on Thursday convicted an Irish national identified as L.T.M. of intentionally killing 31-year-old Mackenzie Michalski and sentenced him to 14 years in high-security prison.
- Prosecutors said Michalski, an American tourist from Portland, Oregon, was last seen at a Budapest nightclub on Nov. 5, 2024, and the suspect was detained two days later and later admitted strangling her.
- Investigators reported the defendant tried to conceal the crime by cleaning the apartment, hiding the body in a wardrobe, buying a suitcase, driving to Lake Balaton and dumping the remains in a wooded area near Szigliget.
- The court rejected the defence claim of an accidental death during consensual BDSM activity after expert testimony and a post-mortem showed injuries inconsistent with that account and a psychiatric assessment found impulsive and aggressive personality traits.
- The sentence counts roughly 18 months already served, bars early release, orders deportation after the term, requires payment of 2.5 million forints in court costs, and the defence has filed an appeal.