A former soldier from the Czech Republic has been convicted of murdering Fife tour guide Rebecca Johnson in Finland.
Karel Frybl – who was in a long-term relationship with Miss Johnson, 26, and went by the name Radek Kovac during that time – had already confessed to killing her at a trial last year.
But he claimed he blacked out during the frenzied attack in December 2016 which left Miss Johnson bleeding out on the floor of their wooden cottage home as they worked as husky sled tour guides in one of Europe’s most remote wildernesses.
Since the trial ended, Frybl has been undergoing court-ordered psychiatric tests.
Yesterday, the panel of three judges at Rovaniemi District Court in Finnish Lapland issued a verdict saying they agreed with the psychiatrist’s conclusions – that Frybl had been in full control of his actions when he killed Miss Johnson.
They cited his attempts to flee the scene of the crime and evade capture, as well as several self-inflicted shallow cuts to his own body that he tried to blame on Rebecca, as evidence of his clear-headed thinking in the hours after the attack.
The court described the attack as brutal and cruel. The blitz stabbing happened while Rebecca was talking on the phone with a co-worker, and she was stabbed more than 30 times in the head, chest, back, abdomen and thigh.
“Numerous knife wounds showed determination, perseverance, and cold-bloodedness” said the judges.
At one point in the attack, the only other person at the husky kennels came into the cabin when he heard screams.
Rebecca was still alive, and told him to call an ambulance. His terrified emergency call was played in full to the court at trial, and he testified that he saw Frybl standing over Rebecca holding a knife. She already had blood on her from wounds to her face.
“The knife wounds have, with certainty, caused the victim great pain and horror,” wrote the judges in their verdict.
Under Finnish law, a murder conviction comes with a life sentence attached. In practice that means 12 to 15 years in prison.
Last night, a local from Nethy Bridge who knew both Frybl and Miss Johnson when they lived there, said: “When he lived here he terrified all the locals. He nearly strangled one person when he had an argument walking his dog. She was totally infatuated with him but she was really nice. He was threatening and violent all the time.”
Miss Johnson’s family were in Finland for yesterday’s verdict, just as they were during two days of graphic testimony at the original trial.
Court documents describe the effect that Miss Johnson’s death is still having on them. Her parents have been in counselling and missed work due to their grief. Her brother and sister have been impacted psychologically by her death and being treated for sleep problems and anxiety symptoms.
Frbyl was ordered to pay costs and financial restitution to the family members for time off work or expenses incurred in connection with Miss Johnson’s death.
Although the District Court found him guilty of murder, Frybl’s legal team can lodge a case with the Appeals Court which could take up to a year to be heard.
“He will be considering with his lawyer whether there are enough grounds for appeal. I guess they will appeal and try to win in the Appeal Court. The probability of winning is very low, but when they have nothing to lose they will probably do it anyway” says Johannes Ahola, a lawyer in Rovaniemi who has been following the case.
“What happens in the Appeal Court depends on the grounds of the appeal. But usually when a tough case like this murder comes, the defendant can request an oral hearing, and that means the whole case will be handled again, in the same way it was handled in the District Court originally”, says Ahola.
However, the Appeals Court has the option to simply undertake a paperwork review of the case, meaning they would look again at the testimony, verdict explanation and psychiatric reports rather than call witnesses to the stand.
Frybl has 30 days to lodge an appeal with the Rovaniemi Appeals Court.