Officers work the crime scene after the remains of officer Gordon Semple, were found at a property in south London

Brizzi admitted dismembering and disposing of Semple’s body, but claimed the 30-year veteran of the Metropolitan police force, died accidentally during a sex game after a dog leash around his neck slipped and asphyxiated the victim
During sentencing on Monday, Judge Nicholas Hilliard told Brizzi there were “terrible features” of the case and his (Brizzi’s) drug addiction had ruined his life. He added: “Regret you express now for Mr Semple’s death has to be seen against what you did over a number of days to his body.”
Brizzi who once earned $89,000 (£70,000) a year web developer at Morgan Stanley, but lost his job because of his crystal meth addiction, had sought help from a users’ support group, whose organizer described how Brizzi had been obsessed with Breaking Bad, he later became a social worker.
It was revealed that he regularly took part in kinky sex including domination, bondage and sexual asphyxiation.
The defendant hooked up with officer Semple, who also took part in extreme sexual practices, at his apartment in Southwark, south London, on 1 April after the pair made contact on the gay dating app, Grindr.
Semple, a member of the Westminster antisocial behaviour team and was supposed to be on duty on the day, sent a message to Brizzi to say he was “free now for [a] hot, dirty, sleazy session”.

Artiste’s sketch of Stefano Brizzi in court during the trial

The court heard that on the day of the murder Brizzi was tired and bad-tempered because he had been engaged in heavy drug use, had not slept and had been let down by someone else on Grindr. He was also dissatisfied with Semple’s appearance, describing him as fat, ugly and unattractive.
Brizzi and Semple had been trying to persuade other gay men in the area to join them for a “chemsex” party, but when one man agreed to join them he was sent away by Brizzi, who told him via intercom: “We’re having a situation here. Someone fell ill but we’re taking care of it. So our party is cancelled,” the court was told.
Pathologists believe he killed the officer after the pair had sex.Four days later, Brizzi was captured in CCTV footage buying items at a hardware store in his neighborhood. He bought pincers, heavy-duty scissors, a putty knife, plastic buckets, carpet cleaner and a perforated metal sheet, equipment he used to strip flesh from the corpse. Horrified officers were met by the gruesome sight of their colleague’s remains in the bath and in plastic buckets on the floor.
Semple’s partner, Gary Meeks, made more than 20 unanswered calls to his mobile phone on 1 April and reported him missing the next morning, but his remains was only found a week later, on 7 April when officers were called to Brizzi’s apartment after neighbors complained about the smell.
Police found a pool of fat and grease inside Brizzi’s oven, which had a blood-stained handle. Semple’s DNA was found on chopsticks, a cooking pot and the oven.
Brizzi had admitted to an intellectual interest in Satanism after officers found a copy of the satanic bible downloaded on his computer and handwritten notes to the devil, although he denied being a Satanist.
He answered the door when officers arrived at his residence wearing pink underpants and initially confessed to deliberately killing Semple. He told police at the scene: “Satan told me to.”
He later recanted this version of events, claiming the death was an accident caused by sexual asphyxiation.

Gordon Semple served with the London metropolitan police force for 30 years

A pathologist concluded that while strangulation was a possible cause of death, it would have taken minutes, rather than the momentary slip of the dog leash described by Brizzi.
Prosecutor Crispin Aylett  confirmed that an odontologist found that Brizzi had eaten part the body of his victim after matching a bite mark on a rib discarded in the kitchen thrash bin with the defendant’s lower teeth. He told the court: “It would be open to my lord to sentence on the basis Mr Brizzi did indeed attempt to eat part of PC Semple’s body.”
In mitigation, defense counsel Sallie Bennett-Jenkins  blamed Brizzi’s meth addiction: “The behaviour can only be ascribed to taking of the drug crystal meth, which, as the court will know, has appalling effects on those who become addicted to it,” She said. According to his attorney, defendant suffered amnesia after the event.
Brizzi had “absolutely no recollection” of it and was “utterly horrified by it”, she added.